Stella Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH has appointed responsAbility Investments AG to manage a €200 million mandate dedicated to impact-focused private equity fund investments in emerging markets.
Announced on January 29, 2026, this commitment represents a deliberate allocation of family capital toward long-term, SDG-aligned opportunities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Stella serves as the investment entity for the Heinz Hermann Thiele Family Foundation and Julia Thiele-Schürhoff.
The mandate channels capital into growth-oriented companies that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, targeting regions with pronounced funding gaps where private investment can generate substantial social and environmental outcomes alongside competitive financial returns.
Mandate Structure and Investment Focus
The strategy adopts a triple bottom line approach comprising financial performance, social impact, and environmental sustainability while maintaining a long-term investment horizon.
Investments prioritise enterprises that create formal, high-quality employment, deliver essential goods and services, protect livelihoods, and promote environmentally sustainable business models.
By focusing on emerging markets, the mandate seeks to maximise impact efficiency, as these regions often exhibit higher potential for positive change per unit of capital deployed compared to developed economies.
responsAbility, a leading Swiss impact asset manager owned by M&G Investments, will oversee deployment through its expertise in private market impact strategies.
As an entrepreneurial family, we are committed to managing our wealth responsibly and with a long-term perspective. By focusing on emerging markets and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, this mandate allows us to deploy a meaningful share of our assets where the need for impact investments is greatest. With responsAbility, we have an experienced partner who shares our values and can help turn this vision into reality.
Julia Thiele-Schürhoff
Rationale for Partner Selection
Stella selected responsAbility based on a combination of institutional strengths: M&G’s role as a commercial parent entity supporting future growth, a globally experienced investment team led by Ralph Keitel, and long-term stability derived from responsAbility’s exclusive mandate from SIFEM (the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets) to manage a global portfolio of private equity and private capital funds in emerging markets.
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This structure mitigates risks of impact drift over time and ensures alignment with Stella’s objectives for deep, measurable social and environmental contributions alongside mainstream-level returns.
When selecting responsAbility as a partner, we were attracted by the threefold combination of M&G acting as a commercial parent entity supporting future growth, the first-class, truly global investment team that Ralph Keitel had assembled, and the long-term institutional stability provided by the SIFEM mandate, avoiding potential future impact drift
Christoph Schlegel, Managing Director of Stella Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH
Broader Implications for Scalable Impact Investing
This mandate exemplifies how family offices are structuring capital for scalable impact: through targeted allocations to specialised managers, emphasis on measurable outcomes in underserved regions, and integration of financial discipline with purpose-driven goals.
responsAbility’s track record, including managing over US$5.8 billion in assets and having deployed more than US$17.6 billion since inception, provides the operational capacity to execute at scale.
The partnership contributes to mobilising private capital for sustainable development in emerging markets, where traditional funding often falls short, thereby supporting inclusive growth, job creation, and environmental resilience.
Looking Ahead
Stella Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH’s €200 million mandate with responsAbility demonstrates a sophisticated approach to deploying family capital for scalable impact investing.
By prioritising SDG-aligned private equity in emerging markets, the structure balances competitive returns with meaningful social and environmental outcomes, while leveraging a proven manager to ensure execution and longevity.
As of February 2, 2026, this commitment reinforces the growing role of family offices in bridging financing gaps for sustainable development.
For the most current details, refer to official announcements from responsAbility and Stella Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH.
responsAbility Investments Overview
responsAbility Investments AG AUM manages roughly USD 5.8 billion in assets under management, focusing on private market and impact investments that target financial inclusion, climate finance and sustainable food sectors in emerging markets.
responsAbility Investments AG address and headquarters are at Zollstrasse 17, 8005 Zurich, Switzerland, with contact via +41 44 403 05 00 or info@responsAbility.com.
responsAbility Zurich refers to the firm’s global headquarters in Zurich, with additional regional offices (for example in Nairobi, Paris, Lima and Mumbai) reflecting its international impact investing footprint.
For responsibility investments careers, the firm posts roles in investment, research, sustainability and operations across its offices, which can be explored on its careers page and LinkedIn; opportunities align with its mission to mobilise capital for development impact.
Separately, a mandate from Stella Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH (a family office) was awarded to responsAbility to manage a €200 million impact private-equity mandate targeting emerging market investments aligned with SDGs.
Ronnie Paul is a seasoned writer and analyst with a prolific portfolio of over 1,000 published articles, specialising in fintech, cryptocurrency, climate change, and digital finance at Africa Digest News.
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