The Eco Invest Brazil Program — External Private Capital Mobilization and Currency Protection, an initiative of the Ministry of Finance under the Ecological Transformation Plan (PTE), combines blended finance instruments, currency protection mechanisms, and competitive auctions to reduce the historical barriers to attracting long-term private investment in the country. By offering tools that mitigate exchange rate volatility and leverage private capital through catalytic public resources, Eco Invest inaugurates a new paradigm in public policy — one in which the State acts as a risk manager and market facilitator, rather than merely a direct financier.
Since its launch in 2024, the program has been tested and refined through successive rounds of thematic auctions. The first auction served as a proof of concept, mobilizing more than R$44 billion in total investments for the green economy. The second auction, in 2025, consolidated the model by directing R$30.2 billion toward the recovery of degraded lands, strengthening sustainable value chains across various biomes. Auction 3, in turn, represents a new milestone in the program’s evolution, as it prioritizes fixed-capital formation through equity investments in strategic PTE sectors — such as the bioeconomy, circular economy, and energy transition — while expanding the range of eligible investment modalities, making the instrument more flexible, inclusive, and aligned with real market dynamics.
Eco Invest 2
The Nature Investment Lab (NIL) had a key advisory role in the recent reformulation of regulations that broaden the range of financial instruments applicable to the Eco Invest Brasil Program. NIL’s contribution, incorporated into the new regulation linked to the Program, facilitates the mobilization of private capital for the national ecological transformation agenda. It was in CMN Resolution No. 5,205, published on April 17, 2025, that we can see NIL’s technical suggestions incorporated, improving the financing conditions for Nature-Based Solutions projects in Brazil.
The Eco Invest Program, managed by the National Treasury, aims to attract foreign capital and mitigate exchange rate risks to finance projects aligned with sustainability. The second auction was announced this week and offers a blended finance line specifically focused on the goal of recovering degraded pastures.
The new Article 3-A of Resolution 5,205, the result of technical discussions with NIL and the National Treasury, along with several other actors, authorizes financial institutions to use the resources of the Eco Invest Line (catalytic capital at 1% p.a. with extended terms) not only in traditional credit but also in new modalities such as:
- Acquisition of investment fund shares: Allows banks to pass on resources via funds dedicated to sustainable projects, which can also attract equity and other types of capital. The resolution even provides for an additional term incentive (extended grace period) for institutions that use this structure.
- Acquisition of securities: Explicitly includes securitization instruments such as Agribusiness Receivables Certificates (CRA), Real Estate Receivables Certificates (CRI), and other credit securities, as long as they are directly backed by projects eligible for Eco Invest.
These changes, recommended by NIL, are fundamental to operationalize more effective blended finance structures. They provide greater legal certainty and flexibility for financial institutions to manage risks and diversify credit by spreading it via funds or securitization. The measure also expands fundraising opportunities by structuring financial products that can be accessed by a wider universe of investors (institutional, retail, international funds).
Furthermore, the measure also optimizes resource allocation by creating financial vehicles with robust governance and transparency, adequate for the complexity and maturation period of ecological restoration and regenerative agriculture projects.
Eco Invest 3
The Nature Investment Lab (NIL) participated in the technical and regulatory enhancement process of the third auction of the Eco Invest Brazil Program, contributing to significant improvements in the program’s financial architecture, operational governance, and capacity to mobilize private capital for strategic sectors of the ecological transition.
The recommendations presented by NIL aimed to expand the program’s reach and flexibility, strengthening its alignment with the needs of value chains linked to Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and with the objectives of the Ecological Transformation Plan (PTE). The contributions focused on:
- Expansion of eligible instruments and allocation routes
- Design of catalytic capital and redistribution of surpluses
- Selection criteria and innovation incentives
- Operational flexibility and timelines
- Sectoral scope and forest restoration
- Impact monitoring and just transition indicators
Next Steps
The Nature Investment Lab worked with the National Treasury, providing recommendations for Eco Invest 4, which is set to be launched in the coming weeks.
