Convergence

Convergence is a global network for blended finance, with the goal to increase private investment in emerging markets and developing economies to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement. Its members include private investors looking to diversify their portfolios, businesses seeking capital, as well as public agencies and philanthropic foundations looking to make their funds go further. 

Convergence’s Design Funding is a unique market acceleration program providing early-stage grant funding focused exclusively on the design and scale-up of innovative blended finance solutions. Addressing the spectrum of blended finance solution design activities, Convergence offers feasibility, study and proof-of-concept and expansion grants. 

Convergence’s Design Funding targets all Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including a variety of sectors and sub-sectors related to climate change mitigation and adaptation in emerging economies, including sustainable forestry and climate-smart land use, sustainable agriculture and agroforestry, and national resource management directly linked to preserving and protecting natural assets.

Backed by multiple governments, internationally recognized philanthropies, and family offices, Convergence is a not-for-profit corporation headquartered in Toronto, Canada that operates globally with physical presence in Washington, DC, Kigali, Nairobi, La Paz, and Singapore.

Financing Instrument: Grants, Technical Assistance

Project scale: US$ 40,000 to US$ 500,000

Grant amounts and duration depend on the solution’s stage of development as well as the Design Funding window under which the grant is awarded:

• Feasibility study grants are used to explore the feasibility of a blended finance solution
• Proof-of-concept grants are used to complete all design and structuring activities required to get a blended finance solution to launch.
• Expansion grants are used to support already launched vehicles to scale and reach a financially viable size.

Recipient countries regions/country groups: ODA DAC eligible countries

Recipient entities: Organizations or consortiums of organizations. UN agencies, development finance institutions (DFIs), and multilateral development banks (MDBs) cannot apply as the grant recipient and directly benefit from the funding. However, these entities can apply with an eligible partner institution as part of a consortium (e.g., asset manager, non-profit, advisory firm, foundation).

Eligibility Criteria: Any organization or consortium of organizations is eligible to apply for funding. For example, eligible organizations could include asset owners, asset managers, financial intermediaries, advisory firms, financial institutions, foundations, not-for-profit organizations, social enterprises, and corporations. The lead organization must be able to provide proof of incorporation and financial statements for the previous fiscal year.

Application guidelines: It is the applicant’s responsibility to choose the Design Funding window for which their initiative is best suited. Applicants should visit the Design Funding page and navigate to individual Window pages to learn more about the focus areas and eligibility criteria for each Window. If an initiative is eligible under multiple Windows, organizations must select one Window to apply to. If an applicant has applied to one Window and has been rejected, they are able to apply to another Window with the same concept, provided they are also eligible under that Window. Organizations can apply to multiple Windows simultaneously with unique initiatives.