Citadele Bank and investment management company I Asset Management have agreed on EUR 4.25 million financing, which will be used for the Baltic Green Fund to acquire forest land in Lithuania and Latvia.
"Forests development is an essential sector of the green economy, while its role in responding to climate change is crucial. Now, as business becomes more interested in sustainable investments, including forestry development, we are ready to offer the necessary financing solutions and contribute to the implementation of such projects. We are happy that I Asset Management has chosen Citadele Bank to finance forest acquisition in the Baltic states,” emphasizes Vaidas Žagūnis, Member of the Management Board of Citadele Bank, Head of Corporate banking in the Baltics.
I Asset Management started investing in forest land in the Baltic states at the beginning of 2019 when the Baltic Green Fund was established.
“We have successfully completed the first stage of the fund's development – the acquisition in Lithuania will strengthen the fund's position in the sustainable forestry market in the Baltic states. This was achieved by cooperating smoothly and quickly with the fund's financial partner Citadele Bank. We are glad that the bank finances not only the acquisition of forest land in Lithuania, but also the planned development of the fund in Latvia. We have laid a solid foundation for the second stage of the fund's development, which we intend to implement during 2021,” comments Simonas Jurgionis, Member of the Board of the I Asset Management, Investment Director of the Baltic Green Fund.
The size of the Baltic Green Fund currently exceeds EUR 10 million, targeted size of the fund – EUR 30 million. The investments of the fund are planned for 8 years with the possibility of extension for two more years. In total, the asset management company I Asset Management manages 7 investment funds that invest in the US stock market and in alternative asset classes such as hotels, forests, private debt.