The Week’s Agent of Impact
Elizabeth McCluskey, CMFG Ventures. This is what an impact investing career path looks like. McCluskey was working at UBS, first in investment banking and then in wealth management, when the Great Financial Crisis wiped out nearly $10 trillion in household wealth. “I got to see firsthand how fragile our financial institutions were and how vulnerable so many Americans were during that time,” McCluskey told ImpactAlpha. She went to Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management to figure out “how I could integrate impact into capitalism.” McCluskey joined Chicago-based Impact Engine and helped it grow from an accelerator for social impact startups into a venture capital and private equity firm managing $63 million in assets. Now, McCluskey has been tapped to head CMFG Ventures’ Discovery Fund, a $15 million open-ended vehicle that will provide venture funding for early-stage fintech startups led by under-represented founders, especially women and people of color.
The Week’s Big 6
1. Year of the Climate Fund. In a single day, announcements of more than $12 billion in institutional capital committed to climate solutions signaled a step-change in climate finance. TPG Rise Climate’s $5.4 billion fundraise and Brookfield Asset Management’s $7 billion fund, along with a parade of other 10-digit green and climate funds, belie a more sober reality. As impressive as the new funds are, Climate Policy Initiative’s Barbara Buchner says what’s remarkable is that “we are not seeing more action to close the trillion-dollar climate investment gap.” Go deeper.
The Week’s Dealflow
Clean energy. Soltage closes a $130 million debt facility to finance a distributed utility-scale portfolio of projects across the U.S… CrossBoundary backs PowerGen to develop mini-grids in Nigeria… Hydropower developer Natel Energy closes $20 million in financing led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Chevron’s corporate venture arm… Bright Power clinches $24.5 million to help commercial building operators and owners manage their energy and water usage… Benin-based small-scale, off-grid solar provider MyJouleBox secures €3 million to expand to Burkina Faso, Senegal, and Togo.
The Week’s Talent
Pembrook Capital Management brings on municipal finance attorney David Baker Lewis and affordable housing advisor Ghebre Selassie Mehreteab as advisors on racial and economic equity in affordable housing lending… Amber Kuchar-Bell, ex- of CDFI Fund, joins Opportunity Finance Network as chief strategy and operations officer… Emma Sissman is promoted to director of portfolio acceleration at SJF Ventures.
The Week’s Jobs
RBC Capital Markets is looking for an analyst for its sustainable finance group in New York… Omidyar Network is recruiting a principal for its Reimagining Capitalism team in Washington, D.C… Mission Driven Finance is looking for an investor relations coordinator… Convergence is hiring an associate director of content and thought leadership and a digital communications associate in Toronto or Washington, D.C.
Editor's Picks
Podcasts | July 30, 2021
Impact Briefing: July 30
On this week’s podcast, host Monique Aiken checks in with David Bank, who has been in South Carolina’s Lowcountry exploring the history of …
Elizabeth McCluskey, CMFG Ventures
Agents of Impact | July 30, 2021
Elizabeth McCluskey, CMFG Ventures
ImpactAlpha, July 30 – This is what an impact investing career path looks like. McCluskey was working at UBS, first in investment banking and …
Photo by Joakim Honkasalo on Unsplash
Policy Corner | July 30, 2021
Policy Corner: Beyond coal, Native housing, banking the unbanked
ImpactAlpha, July 30 – ImpactAlpha is working with the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance to keep Agents of Impact apprised of policy developments. Among this …
Top Stories
Beyond the headlines: Here’s your summer playlist of the best of the Impact Briefing
Beats | August 2, 2021
Policy Corner: Beyond coal, Native housing, banking the unbanked
Policy Corner | July 30, 2021
Social enterprises provide models for stakeholder capitalism in emerging markets
Capitalism Reimagined | July 29, 2021
Green bonds or greenwashing? Growth of aquaculture poses risks for ocean health.
Conservation | July 29, 2021
Class Technologies bags $105 million to improve virtual learning on Zoom
Dealflow | July 29, 2021
Squire scores $80 million to help barbershops manage their businesses
Dealflow | July 29, 2021
Elevate Future Fund raises more than $60 million for diverse founders of climate startups
Climate and Clean Tech | July 29, 2021
Catalytic Capital Consortium seeks best practices for flexible finance
Catalytic Capital | July 28, 2021
Q&A with Asahi Pompey: How the Goldman Sachs executive is helping the investment bank meet calls for racial and gender equity
The Reconstruction | July 28, 2021
India’s Samunnati to list green bond to back climate-resilient farming
Dealflow | July 28, 2021
South African fintech Yoco raises $83 million for small-business lending
Africa | July 28, 2021
TPG Rise ($5.4 billion) and Brookfield ($7 billion) raise the stakes for climate funds
Climate and Clean Tech | July 27, 2021
Capitalism Reimagined
Coliba Recycling Ghana
Capitalism Reimagined | July 29, 2021
Social enterprises provide models for stakeholder capitalism in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, July 29 – Social entrepreneurs in Asia, sub-Saharan African and Latin America have for decades prioritized communities, employees and long-term growth over short-term …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 26, 2021
The case for a ‘Volcker Shock’ for climate
Contemporary efforts to grapple with the climate crisis almost all come with mid-twentieth century branding: a ‘Green New Deal,’ a ‘climate moonshot,’ a …
Photo credit: Change Labs
Capitalism Reimagined | July 21, 2021
Native-led organizations join forces to accelerate entrepreneurship in Indian Country
ImpactAlpha, July 21 – U.S. tribal lands are among the hardest places in the world to do business, with entrepreneurs struggling to access …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 20, 2021
Community Equity Fund readies small checks for Black and Brown proprietors in North Carolina
ImpactAlpha, July 20 – More than 90% of Black-owned businesses in the U.S. are sole proprietorships that lack access to “friends and family” …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 14, 2021
There’s no building back better without investing in underserved communities
Between record levels of government stimulus, an unprecedented vaccination campaign and a buzzing economy, it’s easy to see reasons for optimism as America …
photo: G20
Capitalism Reimagined | July 13, 2021
From COVID to climate, G20 countries look to catalyze capital for urgent action
ImpactAlpha, July 13 – The global effort on COVID vaccines does not bode well for the massive mobilization needed to avert climate catastrophe. …
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash
Call Recording | July 9, 2021
Agents of Impact Call No. 29: Capitalism reimagined for fair gainsharing and equitable prosperity (video)
ImpactAlpha, July 9 – Elevating the power (and wages) of low-income workers is not typically at the top of investors’ agenda. But a fairer …
Photo credit: Getty Images.
Capitalism Reimagined | June 28, 2021
Employee ownership to get a boost from Apis & Heritage’s buyout fund
ImpactAlpha, June 28 — Bethesda, Md.-based Apis & Heritage Capital Partners helps small and mid-sized businesses with large workforces of color transition to …
Photo credit: PolicyLink
Capitalism Reimagined | June 24, 2021
Turning pledges into policies to invest in Black Americans and multi-racial prosperity
ImpactAlpha, June 24 – Investors and executives can lead in many ways as they seek to fulfill their often heartfelt pledges to do …
Capitalism Reimagined | June 22, 2021
Turning the renewed power of workers into a lasting pillar of stakeholder capitalism
These days, American workers could well be saying, as Richard Fariña wrote and Nancy Sinatra sang, “Been down so long it looks like …
Photo credit: Veeva
Capitalism Reimagined | June 21, 2021
A stock market test for stakeholder capitalism as public benefit corporations go public
ImpactAlpha, June 21 – All of a sudden, there is a public market for public benefit corporations. In the decade or so since the …
Photo by Sajad Nori on Unsplash
Capitalism Reimagined | June 17, 2021
To help address systemic racism impact investing needs to get systemic
Even before our society shut down for 13+ months, before a summer of uprisings against racial injustice, and before a historic election season that …
The Reconstruction
Asahi Pompey, Goldman Sachs
The Reconstruction | July 28, 2021
Q&A with Asahi Pompey: How the Goldman Sachs executive is helping the investment bank meet calls for racial and gender equity
ImpactAlpha, July 28 – When confronted with the reality that her 11-year son, a young Black man in America, had seen George Floyd’s …
Podcasts | July 26, 2021
The Reconstruction: How philanthropy unbound can put humanity back into investing in all its forms
ImpactAlpha July 26 – Renée Joslyn wants to restore philanthropy to the roots of the word: love of humanity. Joslyn, the founder of …
Heather Fleming, Change Labs
Agents of Impact | July 23, 2021
Heather Fleming, Change Labs
ImpactAlpha, July 23 – Heather Fleming started an industrial design firm to do thoughtful, community-centered design. Several years ago, she brought her skills …
Nasir Qadree, Zeal Capital Partners
Agents of Impact | July 16, 2021
Nasir Qadree, Zeal Capital Partners
ImpactAlpha, July 16 – As a first-time manager of an impact-oriented venture fund – and a Black man – Qadree defied the odds when …
iStock/izusek.
affordable-housing | July 15, 2021
Enterprise Community Partners’ racial equity bond raises $30 million
ImpactAlpha, July 15 — Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank purchased the first $10 million for the bond, the first to be issued by a community …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 14, 2021
There’s no building back better without investing in underserved communities
Between record levels of government stimulus, an unprecedented vaccination campaign and a buzzing economy, it’s easy to see reasons for optimism as America …
Return on Inclusion | July 13, 2021
The era of diversity disclosure in asset management has begun. Will actual diversity follow?
ImpactAlpha, June 13 – “The asset management industry has a lot of work to do to increase racial and gender diversity,” says Gary Gensler, …
John Duong, Kind Capital
Podcasts | July 12, 2021
The Reconstruction: Practicing kindness to disrupt venture capital and deepen diversity
ImpactAlpha July 12 – Can venture capital be kind? This simple question is at the heart of the impact investing firm Kind Capital …
CEO Robert Carter and owner-operator Shekita Hammond. Courtesy of Carter Transportation Group.
Impact Voices | July 12, 2021
How usable capital can unleash Black business growth and close racial gaps
Carter Transportation is a minority-owned freight delivery service that operates nationwide. It is a relatively young company, without an operating history for traditional …
Nikole Hannah-Jones, Howard University
Agents of Impact | July 9, 2021
Nikole Hannah-Jones, Howard University
ImpactAlpha, July 9 – Good journalism can make people feel uncomfortable. Well-told stories prompt readers and listeners to challenge assumptions, and can force societies …
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash
Call Recording | July 9, 2021
Agents of Impact Call No. 29: Capitalism reimagined for fair gainsharing and equitable prosperity (video)
ImpactAlpha, July 9 – Elevating the power (and wages) of low-income workers is not typically at the top of investors’ agenda. But a fairer …
Photo by Scott Webb on Unsplash
affordable-housing | July 1, 2021
Enterprise Community Partners closes $229 million affordable and workforce housing equity fund
ImpactAlpha, July 1 – The $229 million Enterprise Preservation Fund seeks to acquire and preserve $800 million in existing affordable and workforce rental …
Catalytic Capital
Catalytic Capital | July 28, 2021
Catalytic Capital Consortium seeks best practices for flexible finance
ImpactAlpha, July 28 – The MacArthur Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation and Omidyar Network formed the Catalytic Capital Consortium, or C3, to expand the use of …
Photo credit: National Geographic Society.
2030 Finance | July 27, 2021
Hartree Partners and Wildlife Works tap voluntary carbon markets to finance forest protection
ImpactAlpha, July 27 — The partnership is an example of how rising prices for carbon credits are making more conservation initiatives investable (see, …
Catalytic Capital | July 22, 2021
Four ways investors can structure financing to incentivize positive impact
The Social Impact Bond made its debut in 2010 with the purpose of aligning initiatives and investors around social impact objectives. Since then, …
Catalytic Capital | July 21, 2021
Breakthrough Energy planning “blended finance” fund to marshal billions for next-gen climate tech
ImpactAlpha, July 21 – The billionaire-backed Breakthrough Energy is preparing a blended finance fund to catalyze billions of dollars of investment to scale …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 20, 2021
Community Equity Fund readies small checks for Black and Brown proprietors in North Carolina
ImpactAlpha, July 20 – More than 90% of Black-owned businesses in the U.S. are sole proprietorships that lack access to “friends and family” …
The Rise Apartments, a 200-unit complex, and the Cycle Shop, a historic building, in The Edge, a neighborhood inside the Memphis Medical District.
Catalytic Capital | July 20, 2021
Guarantee from Kresge Foundation catalyzes $30 million for Memphis fund
Memphis’s medical district, with about 10,000 residents and more than 30,000 employees and students, has a high poverty rate and a shortage of …
Capitalism Reimagined | July 14, 2021
There’s no building back better without investing in underserved communities
Between record levels of government stimulus, an unprecedented vaccination campaign and a buzzing economy, it’s easy to see reasons for optimism as America …
photo: G20
Capitalism Reimagined | July 13, 2021
From COVID to climate, G20 countries look to catalyze capital for urgent action
ImpactAlpha, July 13 – The global effort on COVID vaccines does not bode well for the massive mobilization needed to avert climate catastrophe. …
Catalytic Capital | July 2, 2021
Ensuring equitable access to relief funds
ImpactAlpha, July 2 – The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 channels nearly $20 billion in economic relief to small, mostly rural towns. …
Photo by Lagos Techie on Unsplash
Catalytic Capital | June 29, 2021
Consider yourself a fiduciary? Then it’s time to invest in Africa
Africa was home to half of the world’s 10 fastest growing economies last year. Institutional investors must begin to seriously consider Africa as …
2030 Finance | June 24, 2021
What we know about Rockefeller Foundation’s grand ambitions for distributed energy
ImpactAlpha, June 24 – The Rockefeller and IKEA Foundations this week jointly announced a commitment of $1 billion for off-grid energy development in …
Africa | June 23, 2021
Securitizing future cash flows to advance the Sustainable Development Goals in Africa
ImpactAlpha, June 23 – In Nigeria, Primero Transport Services, a bus company with a concession from the Lagos government, securitized receivables from its bus …
Agents of Impact
Bold leaders. Taking action. Driving impact.