Event Summary: Mind the Gap: Bridging Risk Perceptions and Private Capital Flows to Emerging Markets

At the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Sevilla, the SDG Impact Finance Initiative (SIFI), in collaboration with the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), convened a high-level side event focused on unlocking private capital for emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). Despite blended finance growing to USD 18.3 billion, participants emphasised that structural barriers continue to limit its potential, including data transparency challenges and lack of standardisation, risk misperception and institutional conservatism, illiquidity and weak exit strategies, preparation gaps in project pipelines, and competition that undermines additionality. Speakers stressed that overcoming these obstacles requires stronger coordination between bilateral donors, development finance institutions, philanthropies, private investors, and credit rating agencies, aligning around shared platforms and strategic deployment to deliver systemic impact. The consensus was clear: the era of siloed deployment is over, and achieving scale will depend on collective action, shared accountability, and creating enabling environments that make blended finance more transparent, liquid, and investable. The event featured contributions from leading voices in the sector, including Patricia Danzi, Kalpana Kochhar, Elizabeth Namugenyi, Kjell Forsberg, Matt Robinson, Tim Radjy, Lisa Sachs, Guillaume Bonnel, and Ana Maria Camelo Vega.