Swiss impact investor BlueOrchard has hired Martin Diaz Plata as its new head of private equity investments.
- Martin Diaz Plata joins BlueOrchard from Capital Group Private Markets.
- He has over 25 years of experience in private equity investments in emerging markets.
- BlueOrchard was founded by the UN as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments in 2001, and became a member of the Schroders Group in 2019.
Diaz Plata, a 25-year veteran of emerging markets private equity investments, will lead BlueOrchard’s private equity investments team. He was previously managing partner in Capital Group Private Markets in London, which he joined in 2003, and prior to that he spent seven years at DLJ Merchant Banking Partners in New York and Buenos Aires.
BlueOrchard said he has extensive experience and a deep understanding of emerging market investing across a variety of sectors and geographies, adding: “We look forward to further growing our private equity practice with such a high calibre investor.”
The investment firm is dedicated to generating lasting positive impact for communities and the environment while providing attractive returns to investors and contributing to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. It was founded by the United Nations as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments in 2001, and became a member of the Schroders Group in 2019. As of June 2022, it had invested $9.8 billion across over 105 countries, reaching 255 million people in emerging markets.
Diaz Plata said: “Emerging markets remain the fastest growing region in the world and offer ample opportunities for private equity investments. I look forward to leveraging BlueOrchard’s decades of experience in financial inclusion and climate investing to expand its private equity practice and help improve the lives of underserved communities around the world.”
