Bank of America, the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), a global sustainability coalition launched by King Charles III, and French investment firm Eurazeo announced the launch of Lighthouse Initiative, aimed at financing nature restoration and biodiversity protection projects.

The new fund is being launched with $40 million in commitments, with Bank of America and Eurazeo as cornerstone investors. The fund is designed to attract further investment by bringing in new partners in order to increase its scale.

Under the agreement, the fund will be managed by Eurazeo within its Future Industries Fund III, and investments will be monitored through the firm’s impact framework, enhanced with dedicated biodiversity indicators, such as a biodiversity footprint assessment.

Matthieu Bonamy, Partner Future Industries at Eurazeo, said:

“Nature is the foundation of the industries we invest in, yet biodiversity remains one of the most underfunded investment themes. With this initiative, we want to demonstrate that protecting and restoring Nature makes commercial sense, at scale.”

According to the companies , the investment strategy will focus on four areas, including ecosystem protection and restoration through regenerative agriculture and forestry, supporting the transition of industries and supply chains to more sustainable materials and processes, developing financing platforms to attract institutional and public capital into nature-related projects, and technologies for measuring, monitoring and verifying biodiversity outcomes. The initiative will make minority investments in project development platforms and technology-based solutions across developed and emerging markets.

The initiative aligns with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, with each investment expected to contribute to at least one of its targets, including the goal of conserving and managing at least 30% of the world’s land, inland waters, coastal and marine areas by 2030. The initiative also supports the objectives of SMI’s Terra Carta, which aims to place sustainability at the center of private sector activities.

Jennifer Jordan-Saifi, President and Global Envoy, the Sustainable Markets Initiative, said:

“The Lighthouse Initiative’s launch represents the global economic leadership and impact of the Sustainable Markets Initiative. Nature is a fundamental pillar of our mandate and is the true engine of our economy. The Lighthouse Initiative will mobilise much needed private capital into Nature and Nature-based solutions. It represents our unique ability to harness the power of the private sector to deliver results for Nature, people and planet.”