Eltifs--European Long-Term Investment Funds--are vehicles that invest in assets such as energy and communications infrastructure, transport, public buildings or social infrastructure. With the on 15 February, Eltifs will now be more accessible to retail investors. More assets are now eligible and there is increased flexibility.

“We believe that a wider range of investors should be able to benefit from the robust returns and diversification benefits that investing in private assets can deliver,” said Karine Szenberg, head of Europe, Schroders. “Schroders Capital’s first Eltif will support the long-term flow of pools of patient capital into key investment opportunities which, in ​turn, will support long-term savers in Europe.”

The new Eltif from Schroders Capital “will focus on lower and mid-market private equity buyout and growth investments primarily in Europe” but also have the “flexibility to allocate to non-European companies with high operating exposure to Europe,” noted the press release. The fund will invest in the industrial, business services, consumer, technology and healthcare sectors.

“Schroders Capital already offers a wide range of semi-liquid solutions for a broader range of investors but we firmly believe that it is important to continue to expand individual investors’ access and Eltifs are an excellent vehicle to support these objectives,” stated Georg Wunderlin, global head of private assets, Schroders Capital.

The fund has environmental and/or social characteristics under article 8 of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, said the company’s announcement. This means the fund “promotes, among other characteristics, environmental or social characteristics, or a combination of those characteristics, provided that the companies in which the investments are made follow good governance practices,” as described by the regulation.

Schroders Capital, which is the private markets investment division of Schroders Group, has €85.6bn of assets under management as at 30 September 2022.