Welcome to the 8th episode of the 3xP Global SpotlightSeries – where we showcase the trailblazers driving impact, purpose, and progress across our portfolio.
Today, we spotlight Goparity – a sustainable investment platform empowering people to finance projects that create real-world positive impact. Joining us today is Nuno Brito Jorge (NBJ), Goparity Founder and CEO,to dive into how Goparity is redefining the future of finance through sustainability, inclusivity, and innovation.
3xP: Let’s start with a bit of context, what inspired the founding of Goparity, and what core problem were you aiming to solve?
NBJ: After feeling quite frustrated that I could not choose where my money was going to be kept in an ethical bank in Portugal, in 2012, I decided to start a renewable energy project to use my savings in a way that I could have a decent return and a positive impact. And then I couldn't find, so I found a few friends to join me, but we didn't have money enough. And that's when we started to talk to friends and family if they would like to invest withus and we'd pay a return for that solar power project that we would install. It was quite easy to fund, and that's when for the first time we realized there is the opportunity here because people want to know that their money is doing something positive and get a decent return.
3xP: What kinds of projects do you typically finance, and who are the key stakeholders on your platform (investors, project owners, partners)?
NBJ: We fund any project that contributes to the SustainableDevelopment Goals, held by a company or an organization, we don't fund individuals directly. The sectors that we focus on are divided in five different areas, such as: sustainable energy, the green use of land, water and the marine economy, social innovation, and business in transition (which is basically the one that focuses on improving companies and organizations environmental performance).
Regarding stakeholders, we have our users who are investors, mostly individuals, already more than 20,000 people. And, the borrowers, which are the companies that need funding for their projects that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.
3xP: Goparity sits at the intersection of fintech and sustainability – a space that’s rapidly evolving. How would you describe Goparity’s strategic focus today?
NBJ: Our strategy today is all about scale and trust. We’re here to make sustainable investing as seamless as any traditional fintech app. Our goal is to actually facilitate investment and allow people to have to use their money in a transparent way, that they can measure or fully capture the impact of the investments that they are making. All of this while staying laser-focused on transparency and real-world impact.
3xP: What are some of the key challenges and opportunities in operating a sustainable finance platform, particularly across diverse geographies or sectors?
NBJ: We've funded more than 400 projects in more than 20 countries worldwide, in Europe, in Africa, and also in Latin America. We have the European platform, and also a Canadian platform. So, our challenge now is keep growing geographically, but with both feet on the ground, taking countries one by one, doing things well done.
There is a huge opportunity in financing the greentransition needed worldwide, but also in financing companies and projects on the Southern Hemisphere, where a lot is happening right now. And, where every euro invested will probably have a bigger impact than if it was invested in Europe. This said, we will continue to focus in Europe, for instance we're growing a lot in Spain, but the big challenge is international growth, especially on the Southern Hemisphere.
From the user perspective, we also have the challenge to grow our community of investors, which is now as big as 20.000, but we want to be 100.000 by 2027.
3xP: How do you define and measure impact at Goparity? Could you share some tangible outcomes or success stories?
NBJ: First of all, for us to fund the project we need proves that it contributes positively to, at least, one of the Sustainable Development Goals in a tangible manner, which means a way that we can measure. Then, we always measure a few KPIs that tend to be almost common to all projects, like the number of people impacted, the number of jobs created, but then there's also others like how much green electricity is produced or saved, how many tons of CO2 are we helping avoid with this project. And what's interesting is that every user has its own impact section on the platform, so they can actually measure their proportion.
3xP: What do you see as Goparity’s biggest opportunity inthe next couple of years?
NBJ: Our biggest opportunity lies in the fact that we are a change that needs to happen. When money is invested, saved or even hold in a current account in a bank, that money is working towards projects that users might not really be fond of or would not approve if they were given the opportunity. So we see that we are part of that transition that really needs to happen.
We were currently in a moment where we see a lot of merger and acquisition opportunities that are going on, and we believe there will be a consolidation stage in the coming years in Europe in this crowdlending and sustainable crowdlending space.
3xP: Finally, what does “profit with purpose” mean to you?
NBJ: Profit with purpose means making money out of investments that are actually good for planet and people too. Making money and doing good are mutually exclusive.
Thank you, Nuno, for sharing your path and strategic approach with us. We look forward to witnessing your continued success.
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