AEBAN (Spanish Association of Business Angels Networks) continues to expand and strengthen its ecosystem with the addition of Catalytic Ventures, the impact investment club created by Open Value Foundation and focused on supporting social enterprises with high growth and scalability potential.
Catalytic Ventures was launched at the beginning of 2026 as an impact investment club aimed at bringing together business angels, family offices, and foundations around a collaborative investment model. The initiative groups investors who back social enterprises on a deal-by-deal basis. Through a shared learning and investment process, the platform promotes direct and collaborative participation in high-potential, high-impact companies while fostering cooperation among different investor profiles and generating new co-investment opportunities within the ecosystem.
The initiative focuses on highly scalable social enterprises, with particular attention to organizations generating more than €250,000 in annual revenue. Investments typically range between €100,000 and €250,000 per company. Its activity spans markets including Spain, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Southeast Asia, using instruments such as equity, convertible loans, and participating loans.
The incorporation of Catalytic Ventures also brings a differentiated perspective to the AEBAN ecosystem by integrating investment models that combine profitability, social impact, and long-term sustainability — a trend becoming increasingly relevant in the evolution of investment and entrepreneurship models.
Catalytic Ventures was created within the ecosystem promoted by Open Value Foundation, a family foundation specialized in hybrid models combining strategic philanthropy and impact investing to generate sustainable economic opportunities and improve the living conditions of vulnerable communities in Spain and the Global South.
Open Value is also part of Santa Comba, a family ecosystem founded by María Ángeles León and Francisco García Paramés, where each initiative operates independently while sharing the same philosophy and long-term vision. According to the organization, this collaboration creates synergies that amplify both financial and social impact while multiplying the value generated by each initiative.
The project stems from a long-standing commitment to social impact by its founders, who for more than 25 years have allocated part of their wealth to initiatives aimed at improving opportunities for vulnerable communities, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. This evolution — from traditional philanthropy models toward more sustainable approaches inspired by international impact investment leaders — ultimately led to the creation of Open Value Foundation and, later, Catalytic Ventures.
Over recent years, Open Value has progressively consolidated its impact ecosystem and investment activity. Between 2022 and 2023, it expanded its portfolio to 30 social enterprises and managed nearly €1.2 million allocated to venture philanthropy, catalytic capital, and donations, strengthening its capacity to support projects with growth potential and sustainable impact.
Beyond its investment activity, Open Value has supported projects and social enterprises across multiple sectors and markets, promoting initiatives focused on economic opportunity creation and sustainable development. Organizations and projects backed by the foundation include Husk Ventures, BURN Manufacturing, dLana, Al Alimón, Plumbee, Plant on Demand, and Primero H, reflecting a commitment to business models capable of combining growth with social impact.
Marta Huidobro, president of AEBAN, stated: “La incorporación de Catalytic Ventures refleja una evolución que estamos observando en el ecosistema inversor: cada vez son más relevantes los modelos colaborativos que permiten sumar capacidades, experiencia y perspectivas diferentes. La combinación de business angels, family offices y otros agentes especializados no solo fortalece las oportunidades de inversión, sino que facilita compartir conocimiento, identificar mejor el talento emprendedor y generar un impacto positivo más amplio para la sociedad.”
Meanwhile, Mónica Vásquez del Solar, director of Catalytic Ventures, added: “En Catalytic Ventures nos entusiasma enormemente unirnos a AEBAN para impulsar activamente la inversión en empresas de alto impacto social en etapa temprana que operan en la economía real. Estamos convencidos de que estas compañías tienen el poder de transformar sectores, fortalecer una economía más inclusiva y resiliente, generar rendimientos sostenibles a largo plazo para los inversores y acelerar el desarrollo sostenible en las comunidades donde operan.”
AEBAN continues to operate as Spain’s leading organization bringing together 30 business angel networks, groups, and clubs. Its mission is to promote the activities of private early-stage investment actors, including family offices, investment firms and funds, accelerators, incubators, venture builders, and equity crowdfunding platforms.
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