HL BaSE Impact Report 2025 - Flipbook - Page 26
APAC
Beneficial Returns
Beneficial Returns is an impact investment
fund manager that partners with missiondriven enterprises addressing urgent
social and environmental challenges.
Kawanasi is an Indonesian-based social
enterprise working with Indigenous
communities in Eastern Indonesia’s Spice
Islands to sustainably harvest and market
kenari nuts, a forest product sourced
from biodiverse tropical rainforests.
For generations, kenari trees have been
integral to local livelihoods and forest
ecosystems. However, pressure from logging
and mining has increasingly threatened
these forests, particularly as younger
generations are drawn toward short-term
income opportunities. Kawanasi offers a
viable alternative; by connecting kenari
nuts to domestic and international markets,
the enterprise creates stable income for
Indigenous collectors, around 60% of whom
are women, while keeping forests standing.
Beneficial Returns, through its Singaporebased lending entity, provided a $250,000
(USD) loan to support Kawanasi’s
growth. This financing will enable the
enterprise to purchase larger volumes
of kenari nuts and spices, expand
into new export markets including
the United States and Latin America,
and strengthen long-term community
incentives for forest conservation.
“Thanks to Hogan Lovells’ support, money
flowed from benevolent investors to rural
communities in a way that empowers the
poor and protects the environment, while
benefiting consumers. We are so grateful.”
Alex Tee,
Managing Director,
Beneficial Returns
HL BaSE advised Beneficial Returns on the
structure of the cross-border financing,
navigating the legal complexities of a
transaction involving a foreign lender
and an Indonesian borrower.
