2024 Year-in Review: A New CEO, New Climate Justice Fund, and More! | |
As a company and community committed to transitioning capital from extractive to transformative practices, we celebrate every dollar that moves along this continuum, especially as public dollars dedicated to such purposes grow increasingly scarce. Hence we’re proud to share our 2024 roundup: last year we added 29 deals and $36.5M dollars to our investment practice, for a grand total of 158 companies and funds supported with over $296M committed or deployed across our various investor portfolios. This work is across our core, custom portfolio work, alongside our two debt funds: Olamina and Afterglow.
The Afterglow Climate Justice Fund was a new addition to our family in 2024, designed to bridge critical financing gaps for community-driven climate resilience projects. We are looking forward to building momentum toward effective and equitable climate solutions in the year ahead as we continue to grow this fund and get more capital into the hands of community members (or eventually, onto their rooftops!).
If reading our portfolio updates below gives you FOMO, feel free to reach out to us to learn more about how we can work with your family, foundation or institution this year to help move towards greater alignment. We know that private capital can help fill some of the gaps being left in our country right now, and see our work together as more critical than ever.
Sincerely,
George Ashton CEO
| | Recent Investments Supported by Candide | | |
We are proud to announce that Candide Group's Afterglow Climate Justice Fund has closed a loan to Boston Metro-based Sunwealth!
Sunwealth is a clean energy investment firm that finances and manages solar projects that seek to benefit diverse communities through clean power, carbon reduction, cost savings, and job creation.
Afterglow’s $5M loan to Sunwealth will provide financing for solar projects that aim to reduce energy costs for non-profit affordable housing providers, low-income community solar projects, houses of worship, non-profits, and businesses in low-income areas, primarily across the Northeast.
| Additional Q4 2024 Investments | | | |
Cherryrock
Cherryrock Capital backs underinvested entrepreneurs building transformative software companies that will shape the future.
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Mad Capital
Mad Capital provides flexible, transparent, and customized financing built exclusively for organic and regenerative farmers or those making that transition.
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Obran
Obran Cooperative believes that everyone should own their most precious asset: their time. Obran is the first worker-owned conglomerate. Leveraging its portfolio of small businesses, the cooperative empowers its workers through ownership and education.
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Renter Wealth Creation Fund by Enterprise
Enterprise is a national non-profit that exists to make a good home possible for the millions of families without one. The Renter Wealth Creation Fund provides renters wealth-building opportunities traditionally limited to homeowners.
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Solar Holler
Solar Holler helps communities, non-profits, and municipalities develop affordable community-supported solar projects across West Virginia.
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Sunwealth
Sunwealth is a solar investment firm that finances and manages projects seeking to benefit diverse communities through clean power, carbon reduction, cost savings, and job creation.
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Team Additions and Transitions | Candide's team enjoying a sunny day at Lake Merritt in Oakland in September. See www.candidegroup.com/our-people for updates.
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This past year, our team has grown in transformative ways. In May 2024, we welcomed George Ashton III as CEO, followed by Emily Ziethen as Director of Operations in July, and Christina Oakes as Client Services Manager in February 2025. Their leadership has brought renewed focus and momentum to our work.
Additionally, after an amazing six years, Director of Impact Jasmine Rashid has moved on to pursue new opportunities in the space. We are so grateful for her passion, dedication, and stewardship at Candide!
We’re also making changes at Olamina. Since 2019, the Olamina Fund has been working to address the historic lack of access to capital in American communities who have faced decades of disinvestment and intentional extraction. After a successful Phase I investing $42M we’re excited to be laying the groundwork for its next chapter. As part of this evolution, we will be doing so under new leadership as we seek to grow the fund, deepening its impact and community-driven philosophy.
Please join us in congratulating Leslie Lindo, part of the Olamina team for five years, who has moved to a new home as the Executive Director of Hidden Leaf Foundation. She will continue to be part of the Olamina family as a member of the Community Advisory Board to help guide the fund’s future. Most recently, as Managing Director, her extensive planning for Phase II leaves the blueprint for our soon-to-be announced new MD to thrive!
| | From Our Community to Yours | | | | |
by Morgan Simon for Impact Alpha
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To see the last 12 months of recommendations, please email ops@candidegroup.com with your request. Please allow up to five business days for a response. For more information about Candide, please see our Form ADV, Part 2A.
Disclosure: The information contained in this document is intended for educational and information purposes only and should not be considered investment tax or legal advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any particular security. Please consult with your tax and legal advisors regarding your particular circumstances.Certain statements contained herein may constitute projections, forecasts, and other forward-looking statements, which do not reflect actual results and are based primarily upon a hypothetical set of assumptions applied to certain historical financial information. Certain information has been provided by third-party sources, and, although believed to be reliable, it has not been independently verified, and its accuracy or completeness cannot be guaranteed.Any opinions, projections, forecasts, and forward-looking statements presented herein are valid as of the date of this document and are subject to change. The views and opinions are those of the author as of the date of publication and are subject to change at any time. This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results. Candide Group is under no obligation to update this information after the date of this publication. Past performance is not indicative of future results; no representation is being made that any investment will or is likely to achieve profits or losses like those achieved in the past, or that significant losses will be avoided. An investor should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of any financial product carefully before investing. Investing involves various risks, including loss of principal. Charts and graphs provided herein are for illustrative purposes only. For more information about Candide, please see our Form ADV, Part 2A.
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