Tellef Thorleifsson

Tellef Thorleifsson is a Norwegian investor and the outgoing Chief Executive Officer of Norfund, focusing on utilizing profitable impact investing to combat global poverty and climate change. He previously co-founded and served as Managing Partner of Northzone, a leading international venture fund that raised over one point five billion euros across nine funds and backed more than 130 growing companies. Additionally, he co-founded the Voxtra Foundation to target agribusiness investments across East Africa before taking the helm at Norfund in autumn 2018. During his tenure, he successfully doubled the organization's invested capital, tripled annual investments, and managed specialized portfolios including the Climate Investment Fund and the Ukraine Fund. Under his leadership in 2024, Norfund portfolio companies employed 712,000 people, supplied renewable energy to 750,000 households, and generated an average financial return of eight point seven percent.