Afsaneh Beschloss

Afsaneh Beschloss is an economist and leader in the private, public and multilateral sectors who has focused her career on harnessing the power of sustainable finance to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. A pioneer in climate policy and investments, she has found new ways to implement sustainability and inclusion into global finance for three decades.  

Beschloss is the founder and CEO of RockCreek, one of the world’s largest diverse-owned investment firms. Previously, she was managing director and partner at the Carlyle Group. She was treasurer and chief investment officer of the World Bank and worked at J.P. Morgan. Beschloss has also worked closely with central banks and has advised governments, central banks and regulatory agencies on global public policy and financial policy, as well as renewable energy. She pioneered and led the World Bank’s energy investments and policy work on areas including sustainable investing, renewable energy, power and infrastructure to reduce carbon emissions.    

In addition to serving on the board of the Doris Duke Foundation, Beschloss is chair of PBS Foundation and a trustee of the Institute for Advanced Study. She also sits on the boards of the World Resources Institute; the Council on Foreign Relations; the Rockefeller Foundation, where she chairs the finance committee; and the Bretton Woods Committee, where she co-chairs the Future of Finance Working Group.

She was recognized by Carnegie Corporation in its “Great Immigrants, Great Americans 2020” list and received Institutional Investor magazine’s Lifetime Achievement Award as well as the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Award. Beschloss was also listed among the “Most Powerful Women in Banking” by American Banker and in Forbes’ “50 Over 50.”  

Beschloss earned a Master of Philosophy with honors in economics from the University of Oxford, where she taught international trade and economic development. She is a co-author of “The Economics of Natural Gas” and author of numerous journal articles on innovations in finance for international financial institutions and energy economics, as well as renewable energy and impact investing.