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In this episode, I sit down with Mark Cheng, CEO of Social Innovation Capital, to explore his journey into impact investing and the design and delivery of capacity-building services for social enterprises. Mark shares insights on why social enterprises often run hybrid business models and how blended finance and capacity-building services are crucial for their success. We also delve into the types of capital that social enterprises need most, how capacity-building support is tailored to different needs, and the trends shaping the impact investing ecosystem in East Asia. Tune in to hear practical advice for change-makers looking to leverage capital for greater social impact.
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In this episode, I speak with Matthieu Pegon, Director of Blended Finance at IDB Invest, who shares insights on how blended finance can unlock private capital for sustainable development in emerging markets. Matthieu reflects on the role of development finance institutions (DFIs), the critical use of concessional capital, and the importance of risk perception and catalytic capital in mobilizing private investment. We also explore key learnings from IDB Invest’s experience in promoting gender equality and discuss the ongoing challenges of scaling concessional finance to achieve development outcomes. This episode is essential for anyone looking to understand how blended finance can drive impactful investment in underserved markets.
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In this episode, I sit down with Brian Milder, Founder and CEO of Aceli Africa, to explore how blended finance can be used catalytically to unlock capital for agricultural SMEs. Brian explains the origins of Aceli Africa and its mission to incentivize lenders to serve high-impact but underserved market segments in East Africa. We dive into the data-driven approach that Aceli takes, including how they align incentives with the impact they want to achieve. Brian shares valuable lessons learned over four years of operation and discusses the potential to apply Aceli’s model to other sectors and regions. This is an insightful conversation for anyone interested in financing solutions that address market failures in agriculture and beyond.
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In this episode, I am joined by Dimple Sahni, Managing Director of Multi-Asset Impact at Anthos Fund & Asset Management. Dimple shares her journey into impact investing and reflects on the evolution of the ecosystem over the years. We explore Anthos' unique approach to impact investing, the balance between generating returns and driving impact, and the types of investments that have had the greatest positive outcomes. Dimple also discusses the criteria Anthos uses to screen investments for both commercial and impact potential, the challenges faced by women in the investment field, and the opportunities presented by generative AI in impact investing. Don’t miss this insightful discussion with one of the leaders in the field of multi-asset impact investing.
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In this episode, I have a conversation with my friend and former colleague, Tara Murphy Forde, Managing Director of Capital & Impact at Global Partnerships. Tara shares her journey into impact investing and discusses the evolution of the field since she joined Global Partnerships. We explore what it means to be an 'impact-first' investor as opposed to an ESG investor, and why this distinction is crucial. Tara provides insights into Global Partnerships' approach to impact measurement and management, their framework for making investment decisions, and the balance between breadth and depth of impact. She also discusses notable investments, the debate over standards in impact measurement, and the progress and remaining challenges in female-focused strategies for impact investing. Join us for a thought-provoking discussion on the future of impact investing and advice for aspiring professionals in the field.
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In this episode, we engage in a comprehensive discussion with Lynn Eisenhart, Deputy Director at the Strategic Investment Fund of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Lynn shares her journey to the foundation and elaborates on her work with the Financial Services for the Poor team, highlighting key achievements in promoting financial health for low-income customers. We then delve into her current role with the Strategic Investment Fund (SIF), exploring the concept of patient capital, its significance as an alternative to traditional venture capital and grants, and the innovative financing approaches that have proven effective. Lynn also shares success stories, key learnings, and exciting new investment theses that the SIF team is exploring. Tune in for valuable insights and advice for entrepreneurs seeking investment from the foundation.
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In this episode, I sit down with Sana Kapadia, Senior Strategic Advisor at 2X Global, to discuss the transformative potential of gender-lens investing. Sana shares her career journey and the founding story of 2X Global, an organization dedicated to promoting gender equality through investment. We explore what gender-lens investing entails, how it intersects with ESG and impact investing, and the compelling evidence supporting its dual impact on social outcomes and financial returns. Sana also elaborates on the 2X criteria, their practical application, and the evolving landscape of gender-lens investing. Join us for an insightful conversation on how non-financial support is vital to achieving gender-focused impact and the exciting initiatives 2X Global is spearheading to shift market dynamics.
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A conversation with David McKenzie, Lead Economist in the Development Research Group at the World Bank. In this episode we delve into his research on what works in training entrepreneurs and business development support programs. David shares critical insights on defining and differentiating types of training for small and growing businesses, the conditions under which these trainings are most effective, and examples of successful programs. We also explore the link between capacity building and capital, and the future directions of his research in this vital field. Don't miss this engaging discussion on enhancing support for entrepreneurs in low-and-middle income countries.
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A conversation with Brian Boland, co-founder of the Delta Fund, to explore his transformative journey from tech executive to impact investor. Brian shares insights into the Delta Fund’s mission to improve human agency by addressing extreme poverty, economic access, and racial justice. Drawing from his experience as a former Vice President at Facebook and his roles in entrepreneurship and product development at Microsoft, Brian discusses the critical need for aligning philanthropic investments with missions, the importance of results-based funding, and the lessons learned in impact investing. Tune in to hear about innovative investment themes and Brian’s advice for those looking to make a meaningful impact through their investments.
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A conversation with Diane Mak, Head of Impact, Allianz Global Investors. In this episode, Diane shares her journey into impact investing and social finance, reflecting on how the space has evolved over the past decade. She discusses her role at Allianz Global Investors as the Head of Impact Strategy and what it entails for a major asset owner like Allianz. Diane provides insights into how Allianz approaches impact measurement and management (IMM) and the significance of IMM within the organization. We explore the challenges institutional investors face in deploying capital towards intentional impact strategies that address the SDGs, and Diane highlights the opportunities that strategies like blended finance offer in unlocking more institutional investment in impact strategies. Additionally, she discusses the potential for partnering with DFIs to de-risk emerging market investments and shares valuable lessons learned from engaging in and scaling impact investing as an institutional investor.
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A conversation with Arsalan Mahtafar, Head of J.P. Morgan Development Finance Institution. In this episode, Arsalan explains why J.P. Morgan started a Development Finance Institution, their unique approach to investing, and how they think about, measure and manage impact. We also delve into why it is important to differentiate intentional impact-first investing from ESG investing strategies. Additionally, we discuss as why it is important to create impact measurement and management standards and what he is doing with the impact disclosures taskforce to advance that objective. Finally, Arsalan shares his perspectives on how the impact investing landscape will continue to evolve over the coming years.
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A conversation with Daniel Izzo, CEO and Co-Founder of VOX Capital. In this episode, Daniel shares why and how he started VOX Capital, a pioneering impact investment fund based in Brazil. Daniel also shares his perspectives on why a traditional venture capital approach didn’t work for the types of social enterprises that they sought to support, his view on the continuum of capital and how VOX provides support to entrepreneurs beyond providing capital alone. We also discuss why funds like VOX are needed now more than ever and advice he has for social entrepreneurs on how to find a capital provider that is a good fit with impact and business goals.
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A conversation with Tilman Ehrbeck, Managing Partner with Flourish. In this episode, Tilman shares his journey from journalism to venture investing with Omidyar Network and why he decided to found Flourish with a vision to back entrepreneurs working to build a fair financial system. We also discuss the critical importance of seeking financial health versus access to finance, the impact of fintech in emerging markets as well as the potential of generative AI in transforming financial services for the poor.
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In this episode, Hunt Allcott, Professor of Global Environmental Policy at Stanford University, shares the learnings from his research on economic approaches to measuring social impact of companies’ business activities. In the episode we explore what motivated him to investigate this topic, his unique approach to measuring impact using positive and negative externalities of enterprise activity in dollar terms as well as the surprising findings from applying this novel approach to 74 firms across 12 industries. We also discuss what Hunt believes might be the implications of his research on monetization of impact and its potential integration into social and financial performance metrics as well as what that could mean for impact investing practitioners moving forward.
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A conversation with Rebecca Harrison, CEO and Co-Founder at African Management Institute (AMI). In this episode, Rebecca shares insights on why and how she started a business to provide #capacitybuilding services to African small businesses and #entrepreneurs. She also shares insights on different types of capacity-building services and which ones have proven to be most effective, as well as the role she believes these services can play in supporting more women-led or owned businesses to succeed.
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A conversation with Maya Ziswiller, CEO at the UBS Optimus Foundation, about its results-based approach to philanthropy. In our discussion, Maya shares more about UBS pioneering early investments in outcomes-based finance and why it has recently become more active in using blended finance to finance projects in climate adaptation and mitigation. During our conversation, we also discuss Maya’s career journey and her advice to other foundation leadership teams interested in being more active in blended finance and outcome-based finance approaches.
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A conversation with Yasemin Saltuk Lamy, Managing Director at British International Investment, about her early pioneering research on impact investing, how and when development finance institutions (DFIs) can play a more catalytic role in the ecosystem and why it continues to be challenging to scale catalytic financing solutions. In our discussion, we also learn about Yasemin’s own career path and her advice on how to navigate career choices working on impact investing strategies.
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A conversation with Mike McCreless from Impact Frontiers about what it means to be an impact-investor and not just an ESG investor. During our conversation, we discuss how Impact Frontiers defines impact, what have been the biggest achievements to date in impact measurement and management, what work remains to be done and why it is important, to create impact standards particularly for impact reporting.
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A conversation with Yasmina Zaidman, Chief Development and Partnerships Officer at Acumen, about her experience building partnerships to provide patient, risk tolerant capital as alternative to traditional investment and grant making approaches in low-and-middle-income countries. In our discussion, we also learn about Yasmina's 20+ years at Acumen wearing multiple hats, as well as her advice to social entreprenuers about finding funders who are a good fit for their needs.
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A conversation with Jake Kendall, Founder and Director of DFS Labs about why seeking financial health instead of just financial access is an important shift for digital financial service providers in Africa. In our discussion we also talk about Jake’s career path, the innovative business model of DFS Lab and the future of digital financial services.
