This year's judges chose Vital Capital as private equity manager of the year for the second year running, praising its detailed themes and impact focus.

Vital Capital's deep expertise as an impact investor in the emerging markets, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa helped it stand out from the crowd. With $350 million in assets under management, Vital has backed 16 companies and continues to deliver profits of over market rate returns to investors, with transformative impact to 22.6 million individuals annually. As of September 2023, Vital Capital has completed six exits.

Central to the private equity firm's impact strategy is the increase of availability and affordability of essentials. The fund manager invests in food, healthcare, water and sustainable infrastructure, with a focused value creation strategy focused on implementing decarbonisation strategies, improving gender balances, and improving job quality and driving job creation. Vital has supported 75,000 jobs and livelihoods, 42% of which are women.

"A growing number of investors today are aligning their activities to the Sustainable Development Goals – not just to generate positive impact, but also to maximise the performance of their investments. So, this recognition for the second consecutive year as Private equity manager of the year by Environmental Finance's prestigious Sustainable Investment Awards is a true honour," Nimrod Gerber, managing partner at Vital Capital, expressed.

"From delivering first-time household tap water access in India's drought-plagued Karnataka region to unlocking the potential of local smallholder farmers in East Africa, everything we do has the potential to transform millions of lives.

"With this win, we reaffirm our focus on impact-led value creation, so that we can build more future-proof companies that will bring transformative impact to the underserved communities who need it most."