British International Investment (BII)

British International Investment plc · United Kingdom · Europe · Founded 1948 · Strategic development fund · Not an IFSWF member

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Focus

BII: what it invests in

Renewables and climateInfrastructure and utilitiesFinancial servicesHealthcare and life sciencesTelecoms and mediaAgriculture and food security

Private equityVenture capitalPrivate creditInfrastructureCash and money markets

Geography Regional

Scale

BII: how big it is, and on what basis

GBP 6,641.2M

Portfolio valueAs of 2025-12-31

In US dollars: about USD 8.94B. Converted at GBP 0.74264 per US dollar on 31 December 2025.

Transparency

BII: what it publishes

9.0 of 10 Band 5 of 5

Published 8 · Partly 2 · Not published 0

Our 10 item score. It measures what is public, not how well a fund is run.

PortfolioS3 S4: GBP 6.64B (about USD 8.9B, end 2025); As of 2025-12-31
Total net assetsS3: GBP 9.88B; As of 2025-12-31
Committed in 2025S3: GBP 1.8B; As of 2025-12-31
Fund holdingsS3: 247 (161 managers); As of 2025-12-31
Direct investmentsS3: 284; As of 2025-12-31
Climate finance shareS3: 43% (target 30%); As of 2025-12-31

At a glance. BII is the UK's development finance institution and impact investor, wholly owned by the government. It invests in businesses and funds in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. Its portfolio was worth GBP 6.64 billion at end 2025, about USD 8.9 billion, within total net assets of GBP 9.88 billion. It committed GBP 1.8 billion in 2025 through equity, debt, funds and guarantees. S3 S4

Key points

Committed GBP 1.8 billion in 2025: GBP 1.1 billion in Africa and GBP 712 million in Asia. S3
Holds 247 funds with 161 managers plus 284 direct investments. S3
Three portfolios: Growth (GBP 5.64 billion), Catalyst (GBP 923 million) and Kinetic for concessional capital. S3
Climate finance reached 43 percent of commitments, against a 30 percent target for 2022 to 2026. S3
Committed up to GBP 250 million to Ukraine through a platform launched with the EBRD in 2024. S3
Recycles capital by exiting mature assets, such as Ayana Renewable Power in India and Kenhardt in South Africa. S3

Interesting facts

BII began in 1948 as the Colonial Development Corporation, set up to fund farming in British colonies. S1
In 2004 it spun out the private equity manager Actis, selling 60 percent to the management team. S1
BII says Publish What You Fund named it the most transparent bilateral DFI in 2025. S3

Mandate and goals

BII invests to build productive, sustainable and inclusive economies in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, judging each deal on development impact and on commercial success. S3

Productive development: raise economic productivity to support decent living standards. S3
Sustainable development: help economies cut emissions and adapt to climate change. S3
Inclusive development: share gains with poor and marginalised groups, including through gender-lens investing. S3
Mobilise private and domestic capital alongside its own. S3
Return target: No fixed return target; success is measured by impact and commercial sustainability. S3

How it invests

Industries	Renewables and climate, Infrastructure and utilities, Financial services, Healthcare and life sciences, Telecoms and media, Agriculture and food security, Transport and logistics, Technology S3
Asset classes	Private equity, Venture capital, Private credit, Infrastructure, Cash and money markets S3
Stages	Venture, Growth, Buyout, Infrastructure, Credit S3
Geography	Regional. Africa and Asia, with a recent move into South-East Asia and a separate Ukraine sleeve S3
Direct / through funds / co-invest	Yes / Yes / Yes S3
Ticket size	No ticket size is published. S3
External managers	Commits to funds run by 161 managers S3
Co-investment programme	Works with other DFIs, global asset managers and local pension funds S3

Asset mix: Growth Portfolio 84.9%, Catalyst Portfolio 13.9%, Kinetic and Ukraine 0.6%, Hedging contracts 0.6% (as of 2025-12-31) S3

Published criteria

Clear potential for positive economic, environmental or social impact. S3
A business that can become commercially sustainable and successful. S3
Compliance with BII's Policy on Responsible Investing, with a plan to meet its standards. S3

Past investments

Year	Investment	Type	Sector	Stage	Amount
2024	Ukraine Investment Platform. Phased commitment with the EBRD for agriculture, green infrastructure, energy and finance. S3	Co-investment	Agriculture and food security	Not stated	Up to GBP 250M
2025	Acumen Hardest to Reach fund. Fund widening access to affordable renewable power where electricity access can be as low as 12 percent. S3	Fund commitment	Renewables and climate	Venture	Not published
2025	Ayana Renewable Power. Exit from a utility-scale renewable platform after backing it through early risk. S3	Sale or exit	Renewables and climate	Infrastructure	Not published
2025	Kenhardt solar project. Exit from a utility-scale renewable project, freeing capital to redeploy. S3	Sale or exit	Renewables and climate	Infrastructure	Not published
Not published	WorldLink Communications. Broadband provider that grew past one million customers, widening competition. S3	Direct investment	Telecoms and media	Growth	Not published
2025	NAPSA and PIC partnerships. Partnerships with national pension investors to mobilise domestic capital. S3	Co-investment	Financial services	Not stated	Not published
2004	Actis. Spun out its emerging markets private equity team as Actis and anchored its third fund. S1	New company or platform	Financial services	Buyout	USD 650M to Actis fund III

Case studies

Recycling capital through renewable exits S3

What: BII backed Ayana Renewable Power in India and Kenhardt in South Africa, then exited once they could raise market finance.
When: 2025
Size: Not published
Why: Exits prove commercial viability and free DFI capital for new markets.
Outcome: Capital redeployed into new commitments.

Ukraine Investment Platform with the EBRD S3

What: A phased commitment of up to GBP 250M to support reconstruction, backed by GBP 60M of capital.
When: From 2024
Size: Up to GBP 250M
Why: Back sectors critical to recovery: farming, green infrastructure, energy and finance.

Investment process

The board sets strategy and oversees investment through its committees. Each deal is assessed with BII's Impact Framework and scored on impact and commercial prospects. S3

Committee	Role
Audit and Compliance Committee	Oversees reporting and compliance S3
Risk Committee	Oversees risk S3
Nominations Committee	Board appointments S3
People Development and Remuneration Committee	Pay and talent S3

Originate deals through the Growth, Catalyst or Kinetic portfolio. S3
Assess impact with the Impact Framework and an Impact Score. S3
Agree an action plan for investees to meet responsible investing standards. S3
Provide hands-on support, then exit when commercial capital can take over. S3

How to approach: The BII website explains how to submit an investment proposal. S6

Size and returns

Headline size: GBP 6,641.2M (Portfolio value, as of 2025-12-31) S3
In US dollars: about USD 8.94B. Converted at GBP 0.74264 per US dollar on 31 December 2025.
Total net assets: GBP 9,879.9M (Net assets or equity, as of 2025-12-31) S3
Net cash and short-term deposits: GBP 1,758.7M (Total assets (balance sheet), as of 2025-12-31) S3
Staff: Not stated in the sections used S3
Size over time (GBP million): 2024 7,291.2, 2025 6,641.2 S3

Leadership

Name	Title
Leslie Maasdorp	Chief Executive Officer S3
Diana Layfield	Chair S3
Carolyn Sims	Chief Financial Officer S3
Krishnakumar Natarajan	Non-executive Director S3
Simon Rowlands	Non-executive Director S3

Governance and transparency

Legal basis: Public limited company under the Commonwealth Development Corporation Act 1999, wholly owned by the UK Government S1
Oversight: Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office as shareholder S1 S3
Auditor: Independent auditor; 2025 accounts approved on 16 April 2026 S3
Not an IFSWF member. S2
Policy on Responsible Investing applies to all investees. S3

Transparency score: 9.0 of 10 (band 5 of 5). Our own 10-item rubric; see the methodology page.

Published: total assets, annual return, asset allocation, geographic or sector split, audited financial statements, governance and mandate documents, named leadership, regular reporting schedule. S3 S5
Partly published: long-term returns, holdings or deal list. S3

History

Date	Event
1948	Colonial Development Corporation founded. S1
1963	Renamed Commonwealth Development Corporation. S1
1999	Converted into CDC Group plc. S1
2004	Actis spun out. S1
2011	Refocused on South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa; direct investing resumed. S1
2022	Renamed British International Investment; 2022 to 2026 strategy begins. S1 S3
2024	Ukraine Investment Platform launched with the EBRD. S3
2025	GBP 1.8B committed. S3

For family offices

BII does not take private investors, but it often anchors emerging market funds and works with asset managers to bring in new capital. Families can invest alongside it as fellow LPs in those funds. S3

Investing as LPs in funds where BII is an anchor investor. S3
Co-investing in deals where BII brings in commercial investors alongside it. S3

Reports

Annual Report and Accounts 2025: https://assets.bii.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/26153150/BII_Annual-Review-Accounts-2025.pdf S3
Annual Review 2025: financial performance: https://ar2025.bii.co.uk/investments/our-financial-performance/ S5

Common questions

How big is BII?

Portfolio of GBP 6.64 billion and total net assets of GBP 9.88 billion at end 2025. S3

Who leads BII?

Leslie Maasdorp is CEO and Diana Layfield is Chair. S3

Who owns BII?

The UK Government, through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. S1

Where does it invest?

Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, plus a Ukraine sleeve. S3

Is BII an IFSWF member?

No. It is not on the IFSWF members list. S2

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Polish Development Fund (PFR) Poland · PLN 49.77B

All sovereign wealth funds in Europe · All strategic development funds · All funds in United Kingdom

Sources

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