Function: Partner
Contact: bernadette@fount-eu

Bernadette is Managing Partner, co-founder and owner of FOUNT. She has around 25 years structured finance and strategic advisory experience of which around 20 years experience in impact investing.

Within FOUNT, Bernadette has been leading several strategic advisory assignments focusing on designing, implementing and evaluating various impact investment initiatives in different sectors and geographies.

Bernadette has set-up several impact investment funds and is currently Director of BIX Capital and Director and IC member of the Good Fashion Fund. On International Women’s day Bernadette was nominated as one of the ‘Top 50 women in sustainable finance 2022 in the Netherlands. Additionally Bernadette is Advisory Board member of Berendina Micro Finance and Board member at Stichting Anne-Bo.

She has worked with different type of clients and investors in various countries in Africa, Asia, CEE and Latin America.

Before establishing FOUNT, Bernadette co-founded Corporate Connect, a financial advisory firm with a focus on impact investing in emerging markets, and worked at Accenture, BTMU investment banking (London) and ABN AMRO Bank’s investment banking division (Amsterdam).

Function: Partner
Contact: bob@fount.eu

Bob is Managing Partner and co-founder of FOUNT. He has over 20 years of investment experience and a wealth of experience in setting up and managing funds. Bob is currently Fund Director of Good Fashion Fund, Board and IC-member for BIX Capital as well as Board and IC-member for AGRI3 Fund Manager. Additionally, he is Advisory Committee-member for the Mergence Renewable Energy Debt Fund in South Africa.

Within FOUNT, Bob has been leading in the long-term assignment for portfolio management and refinancing of a social housing loan portfolio in 17 emerging countries and played a key role in ‘investment readiness’ assignments for several clients. Prior to FOUNT, Bob worked for impact investment organisations FMO, Triodos Investment Management and ProCreditBank and gained hands-on experience in general management and SME banking. He has a vivid interest in sustainable business operations and has been on assignments in numerous countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Central- and South Eastern Europe.

Function: Managing Director BIX
Contact: jeroen@bixcapital.nl

Before founding BIX Capital, Jeroen was deputy-director of the Shell Foundation. In this role he was among others responsible for the Breathing Space (Access to Energy) programme and setting up Shell Foundation’s carbon based pre-finance cookstove investments. With this experience, Jeroen created the investment concept of “Impact-based pre-finance” for BIX Capital. Previously, he worked for FMO, the Dutch development bank as investment officer private equity in Eastern Europe and Subsahara Africa and at KPMG transaction services on wide ranging due diligence engagements, mainly for European Financial Institutions.

Function: Senior Investment Advisor
Contact: gerard@fount.eu

Gerard has more than 20 years of work experience, including 6 years of direct impact investing experience in Africa. From 2006-2015 he worked for two different private equity firms: HAL Investments (2006-2009) and the Investment Fund for Health in Africa (“IFHA”, 2009-2015, investors including IFC, APG and FMO). Both funds are well-respected investment organisations with an international focus. Through his broad work experience, Gerard has developed a keen insight into the entire investment process, from the first contact with a potential investment candidate to portfolio management activities.

He joined FOUNT in early 2015 as a Senior Investment Advisor. Since then, Gerard has worked for Reall (affordable housing investor in Africa and Asia, based in the UK), PMIC (microfinance organisation in Pakistan), IFHA (healthcare PE fund focused entirely on Africa) and BIX Capital (clean energy, main focus on Africa and Asia), amongst other. Assignments included performing a market study, financial modelling, compiling an Investment Memorandum as well as deal execution.

Gerard obtained his Master’s degree in Macroeconomics at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, the Netherlands.

Function: Controller
Contact: sabien@fount.eu

Sabien has worked in finance positions for various profit and non-profit organisations for over 20 years. Besides having a masters degree in General Linguistics, she is a Qualified Business Controller (QC). The seven years she spent working and living in Botswana and Ghana acquinted her with development issues and sparked her interest in impactful busniness models. Sabien joined FOUNT as of 1 October 2019 and is already somewhat familiar with the firm thanks to her work for Goodwell in 2012-2013. Prior to joining FOUNT she worked for Porticus CV as a business controller.

Function: Investment Advisor
Contact: samira@fount.eu

Samira started her career at the Commercial Bank of Africa in the risk management department and thereafter offered pre-investment support to various Small and Medium Sized companies in East Africa. Prior to joining FOUNT, she was a Senior Analyst at Ernst and Young LLP where she worked on various transactional advisory assignments in infrastructure, financial services, retail, and hospitality. She has supported various projects in due diligences, financial modelling, feasibility studies and data analysis. Samira is passionate about building communities in developing countries through impact financing and was Project Manager to a social impact green bond in Kenya sponsored by Cardano Development B.V and Water Finance Facility.

She holds a Master’s with Distinction in Development Finance from the University of Manchester and a Bachelor’s Degree in Financial Economics from Strathmore University.

Function: Investment Director AGRI3
Contact: casper@fount.eu

Casper joined FOUNT in August 2020. He has over 12 years of experience in development finance covering all stages of the investment process. Before joining FOUNT, Casper developed his career at Dutch development bank FMO, where he gained experience in different roles in front office and credit risk departments. From 2012-2016 he contributed to the development of FMO’s Agribusiness portfolio as Investment Officer focusing on debt transactions throughout Latin America. From 2017-2020 he worked in FMO’s Special Operations department where he managed restructuring and recovery of distressed investments in, amongst others, agribusiness, renewable energy and real estate sectors in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

Function: Senior Analyst
Contact: buck@fount.eu

Buck joined FOUNT in May 2021. Prior to this, Buck did research on sustainability in the beef sector at the Ministry of Agriculture. After that he did an internship at the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank FMO where he worked on the sustainability framework for agricultural investments. During his studies he focused on international sustainability challenges, and he went to Spain and Senegal for a couple of months to look into sustainable entrepreneurship.

Buck holds a master’s degree in Agricultural Economics from the Wageningen University, with a bachelor’s in Development Economics.

Function: Investment Advisor
Contact: francisco@fount.eu

Francisco joined FOUNT in January 2022. Prior to this, he worked for nearly six years in the banking industry at BNP Paribas in Lisbon and in Amsterdam. In his previous roles, he gained experience in originating, structuring, and executing lending corporate transactions.

He worked with private and public companies from a vast array of different sectors throughout Europe, and in transaction types ranging from asset based lending to LBOs. Some of his key responsibilities included analyzing debt RFPs and doing financial models.

Francisco obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Finance at the University of Lisbon.

Function: Risk & Finance Advisor
Contact: petra@visserconsulting.nl

Petra is an independent advisor supporting impact investment organizations. She has over 15 years’ experience in development finance at FMO and TCX, and in strategy consulting at BCG. Prior responsibilities include investment management, fund management, strategy, risk management, finance and operations.

Petra is involved with FOUNT since September 2022 to maintain a risk, finance and compliance organization that enables the achievement of business objectives in a controlled way.

Function: Impact Investment Team lead
Contact: gemma@fount.eu

Gemma joined FOUNT in January 2022. With 15 years of experience in development finance in emerging markets, she is a seasoned professional in impact investing.

Before joining FOUNT, Gemma fulfilled the role of Regional manager East Africa and Asia at EDFI MC – ElectriFI in Brussels. ElectriFI is a blended finance facility funded by the EU providing early stage catalytic capital to financially sustainable initiatives aimed at increasing or improving access to energy in emerging countries.

Gemma has worked 7 years as Investment Officer at FMO, the Dutch development bank, in multiple regions and sectors, covering the full investment process life cycle. Having left FMO and the Netherlands in 2014, she lived in Bulgaria for 6 years where she worked as independent investment advisor, among others for FMO and ElectriFI.

Gemma finished her masters degree in international financial business in Amsterdam.

Function: Investment Advisor FOUNT
Contact: jayanth@fount.eu

Jayanth is an investment professional with a background in impact investing, impact investment advisory and venture capital-focused on Asia and Africa. He is skilled in the entire investment process from origination to transaction closure and portfolio management. He has led transactions as part of both equity (Ennovent IIH) and debt (Grameen Impact) investment teams across food & agriculture, financial services/inclusion, health, education, energy, technology and waste management.

In his advisory roles, Jayanth has led multi-cultural and international teams to implement detailed impact investment advisory projects across emerging markets. He has successfully consulted on impact strategy, feasibility, investment readiness, impact evaluation, etc. for impact funds, non-profits, foundations, innovation & development consultancies and governments.

At FOUNT, Jayanth advises the Good Fashion Fund on the India transactions and supported the fund's first transaction in Pratibha Syntex.

He has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Oxford and a Bachelor of Business Administration with First Class Distinction from the University of Madras.

Function: Legal Counsel BIX
Contact: caroline.noothoven@bixfund.com

Caroline is a finance transaction lawyer who has been involved in lending and private equity transactions in emerging markets for over 15 years. She started her career in private practice with focus on capital market transactions, but subsequently worked in-house with the Dutch Development Bank FMO, the Investment Fund for Health in Africa, DOB Equity and, since 2015, BIX Capital. Caroline is also involved with another Cardano Development initiative, the Water Finance Facility. During a period of 4 years Caroline was located in Lagos, Nigeria.

Function: Head of ESG and Impact AGRI3 Fund
Contact: kate@fount.eu

Kate has over twenty-five years’ experience in ESG, Social Sustainability and International Development working within the agriculture and forestry sectors primarily in sub-Saharan and West Africa. She has worked with private sector corporations, financing institutions, multi-lateral donors, international NGOs, industry platforms and civil society organisations promoting and facilitating responsible, inclusive investments.

Prior to joining FOUNT in September 2022, Kate spent much of her career living and working in Tanzania and Malawi, before relocating along with her family to the UK in 2015 where she undertook consultancy work and more recently a valuable role as an ESG expert at Mirova Natural Capital.

Within FOUNT Kate is responsible for all ESG aspects of the AGRI3 fund: ESG appraisal and due diligence; establishing ESG requirements for financing; developing impact indicators and working with Partnerbanks and clients on risk mitigation and positive impacts for transactions in low and middle income countries. She also takes the lead in developing ESG and impact policies and tools for the fund.

Function: Business Development Advisor FOUNT
Contact: rien@fount.eu

Rien joined FOUNT in January 2023. Following roles at the Chamber of Commerce and ABN AMRO, he entered the development finance world in 2009, joining Triodos Investment Management as an investment officer for Eastern Europe & Central Asia.

In 2011, Rien became Deputy Regional Director at Oikocredit International leading the EECA investment team and managing their 125M EUR portfolio of multicurrency debt investments. From 2014, Rien took a global role in business development, training and strategy development, focusing on developing new markets and products for Oikocredits African and Asian offices.

Prior to joining FOUNT, Rien worked with Cordaid International as Business Developer Inclusive Finance, with emphasis on creating access to finance in fragile states in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Rien has a master in Russian Studies from the University of Amsterdam.

Function: Financial Controller
Contact: liezl@fount.eu

Liezl has degrees in the fields of Accounting and Financial Management. She is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

Liezl started her career in South Africa, thereafter moving into in the global market working with companies from various countries. She has 10 years of experience working with profit organization in several different industries with vast experience in the field of securitisation.

Function: Analyst
Contact: connor@fount.eu

Connor joined FOUNT in May 2023. Prior to this, Connor worked as an impact analyst at Impact Institute, which looks to measure and monetize the positive and negative social and environmental impact of its clients. Here he focused on creating responsible value chains, mainly in the food and agriculture sectors.

Connor also has experience as a B Lab consultant, conducting a B Corp assessment for a leading clothes manufacturer as well as a volunteer at EcoSwell, a sustainable development NGO in Peru.

In his free time, he enjoys playing ice hockey for the Amsterdam Tigers, reading, and hanging out with friends.

Connor holds a Master of Science degree in Environment and Resource Management from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and a Master in Sustainable Business and Innovation from EADA Business School Barcelona.

Function: ESG and Impact Advisor, AGRI3 Fund
Contact: js@shankleman.com

Jill has over thirty years experience advising investors and development finance institutions on understanding and mitigating ESG risks and delivering positive impact as part of a commercial project.

Within the AGRI3 Fund, she has been responsible from September 2021 to September 2022 for ESG appraisal and due diligence; establishing ESG requirements for financing; developing impact indicators and working with Partnerbanks and clients on risk mitigation and positive impacts for transactions in low and middle income countries. She also took the lead in developing ESG and impact policies and tools for the fund. Until September 2022 she was involved with AGRI3 as a member of the E&S and Impact Advisory panel and at the same time provided advice and support on specific agriculture E&S and impact-related topics.

Prior to joining the AGRI3 Fund, she was a senior ESG Advisor to the Althelia Climate Fund. For most of her career, Jill has worked as a consultant and has extensive experience of the extractive industries worldwide as well as of the agriculture and forestry projects that AGRI3 focusses on. Jill has also been a Senior Social and Environmental Specialist at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and FMO, and was responsible for setting up the social performance consulting practice of Environmental Resources Management (ERM).

Function: Trainee
Contact: nina@fount.eu

Nina is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Politics, Psychology, Law, and Economics (PPLE) at the University of Amsterdam. She is majoring in the discipline Politics. Prior to moving to Amsterdam she majored in International Affairs at the University of Maine in the U.S. where she had a scholarship to play field hockey.

Before FOUNT, Nina worked as a recruitment assistant. However, FOUNT connects to her future aspirations more since it is internationally oriented and makes a positive impact in other countries, contributing to a more sustainable world.