Monday, August 31, 2009 – Friday, September 4, 2009
We’ve been talking a lot about impact investing lately at Beyond Profit. So, last week, for our Twitter “Social Enterprise of the Day,” we thought it was high time that we highlight the work of some actual impact investors. The following five enterprises are investing equity in social enterprises, looking to generate both financial returns and social benefit.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Social Enterprise of the Day – Springhill Equity Partners
SpringHill Equity Partners is a social private equity fund manager providing growth capital and support to small and medium sized enterprises in Africa. SpringHill’s fund targets both financial returns and social benefit. Believing that a thriving private sector is the only scalable, sustainable response to poverty and its effects, SpringHill facilitates and promotes an asset class that fuels private enterprise in under-served areas. SpringHill invests in locally-owned private enterprises that generate substantial benefits for investors, entrepreneurs and their communities.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Social Enterprise of the Day – Bamboo Finance
Bamboo Finance is a Swiss-based, global investment advisory firm specializing in the financing of social entrepreneurship. Its goal is to support innovative, commercially viable enterprises that are designed to generate significant social impact and solid financial return. Through strong values and sound business principles, Bamboo Finance has sparked and led a major transformation toward more efficient capital markets for social and environmental change. The direct result has been the expansion and replication of powerful models that aim to solve society’s most critical problems.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Social Enterprise of the Day – IGNIA
IGNIA is a venture capital firm based in Monterrey, Mexico, which supports the founding and expansion of high-growth social enterprises that serve the base of the socio-economic pyramid in Latin America. IGNIA’s key objectives are to identify promising entrepreneurs with scalable businesses that deliver high value propositions to the Base of the Pyramid (BoP), invest in them under terms and conditions that are mutually beneficial, and guide and support their rapid growth into enterprises capable of generating financial returns and social value. By providing effective responses to the needs of underserved low-income populations, which are consumers as well as active participants in productive value chains, IGNIA empowers entrepreneurship and generates social impact while creating attractive financial returns for its investors. IGNIA is raising an initial fund of approximately US$75 million.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Social Enterprise of the Day – BlueOrchard
BlueOrchard provides innovative financial instruments and solutions for placements in microfinance, bridging the gap between capital markets and microfinance institutions. BlueOrchard generates profitable returns on investments while supporting the development of thousands of promising small enterprises. Believing in creating value through solid long-term relationships by providing debt and equity to microfinance institutions in all stages of development, they empower the poor and improve their quality of life by promoting income-generating activities.
BlueOrchard is the world’s leading commercial microfinance intermediary, providing loans to microfinance institutions through its subsidiary BlueOrchard Finance S.A., and investing in the equity of microfinance institutions and microfinance network funds through its subsidiary, BlueOrchard Investments S.A.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Social Enterprise of the Day – Good Capital
Good Capital is an investment firm that increases the flow of capital to innovative ventures creating market-based solutions to inequality and poverty. GoodCap is a bridge between traditional philanthropy and traditional investment, balancing the social commitment and activist orientation of the philanthropic world with the risk-taking and rigor of the investment and business worlds. Using a high engagement model, Good Capital invests in the most promising social enterprises and gives them the tools and guidance they need to succeed. Good Capital’s first financial product, the Social Enterprise Expansion Fund, seeks to fill the risk-taking expansion capital gap for social enterprises while providing investors with an attractive blend of financial and social returns. The Social Enterprise Expansion Fund provides equity and equity-like growth capital to social enterprises that are ready to expand.
In addition, Good Capital actively leads the development of the emerging social capital market (for example, by spearheading SOCAP). They share a deep commitment to the creation of a new, informed, and passionate world of investing that strategically moves more capital to do good.
