The fund builds on SLM Silva Fund I, launched in 2018 to acquire conventionally managed forests in Ireland and transition them to CCF. As of June 2026, Fund I had acquired 2,000 hectares, with 67 per cent of its forest area transitioned to CCF management. Fund II will continue investing in Ireland and expand the strategy across a wider range of European forest ecosystems and geographies.

“European forestry, with a focus on CCF and afforestation, can play an important role in supporting ABP’s climate and biodiversity ambitions while generating attractive long-term returns” Andrey Gushchin, senior portfolio manager in APG’s Private Natural Capital team, said.

The New EU Forest Strategy for 2030 highlights CCF as an approach that protects and restores biodiversity, increases carbon storage and strengthens resilience to climate extremes. According to SLM Partners’ experience and research, CCF can also offer distinct economic advantages. Regular, selective harvests bring cash flows forward and reduce exposure to timber-price volatility. Active management can improve timber quality and produce larger, more valuable trees, while natural regeneration can reduce or avoid replanting costs. Together, these features can support attractive risk-adjusted returns while enhancing the resilience of forest assets.

Beyond the economic case, SLM believes CCF has significant environmental impact potential. By creating more complex, diverse and uneven-aged forests that more closely resemble natural forests, CCF has the potential to contribute to carbon storage, biodiversity and resilience to climate change.

Only an estimated 22–30 per cent of European forests are currently managed under CCF. APG’s commitment supports the continued expansion of CCF practices across Europe and contributes to the transition towards more sustainable forest management.

See more about the firm here and here.

M&G
has launched the M&G Diversified Private Credit Feeder Long-Term Asset Fund (LTAF).

The fund aims to provide investors with diversified sources of income and returns while channelling capital to businesses and projects across the real economy in the UK and Europe, the UK-headquartered asset management group said in a statement yesterday. 

The LTAF has been launched with £74 million ($97.73 million), including capital from M&G's £138 billion With Profits Fund. 

The fund enables DC pension schemes and other professional investors to access a broader range of credit opportunities and uncorrelated returns, including lending to businesses and financing infrastructure, real estate and other assets that that are often difficult to access through listed fixed income markets, M&G said. 

The fund has been rolled out by M&G’s private markets business.