The Week’s Big 7
1. ESG risk for countries. There are by now dozens of ways to measure corporate exposure to climate risks, but few good methods exist to assess exposure to authoritarian regimes, like China or Saudi Arabia. Just this week, China’s Daqo New Energy, a major solar supplier listed on the New York Stock Exchange, hired an auditor to address investor concerns about forced labor at its Xinjiang plant.
The Week’s Agent of Impact
Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand. The 40-year-old prime minister is redefining leadership for the 21st century. Early in the COVID crisis, Ardern chose not to contain the pandemic but to eliminate it. Led by science, Ardern moved decisively to impose border controls and a nationwide lockdown. Government spending provided essential support to businesses and backstopped incomes of workers who lost their jobs. Ardern and her ministers cut their own pay by 20% for six months. She chose empathetic leadership, framing the country a unified “team of five million.” Roughly 100 days after the first identified case in New Zealand, Ardern’s government declared the pandemic effectively over. There have been setbacks, of course. Still, New Zealand, with five million people, has tallied just 2,700 cases and only 26 deaths.
The Week’s Dealflow
Frontier finance. The U.K.’s CDC Group provides $100 million to help ETG connect smallholder farmers in Africa… CDC Group also helps Nigeria’s Uhuru Investment Partners reach a $113 million close for a growth-stage fund that integrates environmental, social and governance practices... Dolma Fund Management raises $40 million to invest in renewable energy, healthcare and technology ventures in Nepal… IFC is making a $10 million equity investment in South Africa’s Eris Property Group to develop affordable student housing… GIZ Egypt is launching a €100 million funding program for first-time fund managers to close the early capital gap for Egypt’s entrepreneurs.
The Week’s Talent
Greg Jones, ex- of CVC Capital Partners, joins LeapFrog Investments as head of investor relations. Alice Maltby, ex- of Apax Partners, joins LeapFrog as an investor relations officer… Amma Sefa-Dedeh of Stanbic Investment Management Services is named CEO of Impact Investing Ghana, the GSG’s Ghanian National Advisory Board… Teree Henderson, ex- of Partnership for Public Service, joins SoLa Impact as director of social impact… Danny Almagor takes on the executive chair role at Australian fund manager Impact Investment Group, following Daniel Madhavan’s departure last month.
The Week’s Jobs
New Energy Nexus is hiring a climate fintech credit card consultant in New York… Impact Capital Managers is hiring an analyst in New York… Village Capital seeks a community associate in Washington, D.C… JFFLabs is hiring a director for its Employment Technology Fund… 17 Asset Management is looking for a sustainable investing fellow in New York… Acumen East Africa seeks a senior portfolio associate in Nairobi.
Editor's Picks
Podcasts | May 14, 2021
Impact Briefing: Week of May 14
ImpactAlpha’s Jessica Pothering and David Bank join host Brian Walsh to talk about pulling the levers of risks and returns in new financial structures for unlocking capital in emerging markets.
Frontier & Growth Markets | May 11, 2021
J.P. Morgan’s ‘development financial institution’ amps up transparency in emerging markets dealmaking
ImpactAlpha, May 11 – Development finance institutions are typically quasi-governmental agencies that invest in economic development (and soft power) in emerging and growth markets. …
Photo credit: Washingtonian.
Catalytic Capital | May 11, 2021
Capital Impact Partners to manage Nourish DC to fund local food businesses
ImpactAlpha, May 11 — Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Browser is tapping Arlington, Va.-based community development financial institution Capital Impact Partners to receive $1 …
Top Stories
How digitalization can enhance, shift and transform the entrepreneurial support ecosystem
Entrepreneurship | May 13, 2021
Africa’s online safety is a new frontier for social innovation
Africa | May 13, 2021
Kroger Innovation Fund and Village Capital to accelerate 10 food-tech startups
Agrifood Tech | May 13, 2021
KKR investment in Charter Next Generation makes all 1,700 employees owners
Dealflow | May 13, 2021
Orion Energy Partners’ $1.1 billion fund taps investor appetite for energy transition
Climate and Clean Tech | May 13, 2021
Eight promising impact startups in fintech, fashion and education
Dealflow | May 12, 2021
Shaper Impact Capital Q&A: Building a network of young professionals to support global impact startups
Impact Voices | May 12, 2021
CDC Group provides $100 million to help ETG connect smallholder farmers in Africa
Africa | May 12, 2021
J.P. Morgan’s ‘development financial institution’ amps up transparency in emerging markets dealmaking
Frontier & Growth Markets | May 11, 2021
Sixty8 Capital raises $20 million to back underrepresented tech founders
Dealflow | May 11, 2021
The Reconstruction
Lake Street in Minneapolis, MN | Photo credit: Sam Wagner
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – The conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd sent a signal to residents of Minneapolis …
Carmen Rojas of The Marguerite Casey Foundation | Photo credit: The Nonprofit Times
Impact Voices | May 4, 2021
100 Days of President Biden: Progress and peril on the road to a just economy
As the Biden administration completes its first 100 days, I am both surprised by the ambition of this administration and disappointed by its …
Kelli Saulny of Camelback Ventures
The Reconstruction | May 3, 2021
The Reconstruction: Accelerating Black entrepreneurship to build wealth across generations
ImpactAlpha, May 3, 2021 – Inheritance is not only about the wealth we pass down from grandparents to parents to children. It is …
The Collective's Sandra Dungee Glenn, Steven Sanders and Tayyib Smith
The Reconstruction | April 27, 2021
How a collective of Black developers is raising equity for inclusive real estate in Philadelphia
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 27 – Decades of failed policies and extractive investments have left Black neighborhoods in Philadelphia with undervalued housing, underfunded services and a …
Photo credit: ExecOnline
Dealflow | April 22, 2021
ExecOnline raises $45 million to diversify corporate leadership
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 22 – Less than 1% of Fortune 500 CEOs are Black. Less than 10% are women. ExecOnline partners with business schools to …
Boston Ujima Project | Photo credit: Boston Ujima Project
Impact Voices | April 20, 2021
Centering community voices and power in investment processes
The increased investor attention to racism and the inequality laid bare by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis has intersected, at long last, with the …
Photo credit: AdvancedAg, an Indigenous-owned water and agtech company in Alberta
Canada | April 20, 2021
Indigenous Growth Fund raises $150 million to back Native lenders in Canada
ImpactAlpha, April 20 – A new fund in Canada is aiming to impact marginalized Indigenous communities by channelling capital to Indigenous-owned financial institutions. The …
Community Finance | April 20, 2021
Reviving a Black cultural corridor in West Oakland – as a community-led cooperative
In another era, Esther’s Orbit Room helped make West Oakland the “Harlem of the West,” hosting the likes of B.B. King, James Brown …
Rey Ramsey of The Nathan Cummings Foundation | Photo credit: The Org
Podcasts | April 19, 2021
The Reconstruction: Rey Ramsey on deploying 100% of foundation assets toward positive impact and racial equity
ImpactAlpha, April 19 — The case for breaking down philanthropy’s historical divide between the investment side of the house and a foundation’s mission …
National Memorial for Peace and Justice, Montgomery, AL | Photo credit: DiAnna Paulk
Impact Voices | April 15, 2021
Grounding investors in history to ensure this Reconstruction delivers on its promise
For us at Illumen Capital, the echoes of history are never far from the work at hand. We know we can only begin …
Tiffany Manuel of TheCaseMade | Photo: Tiffany Manuel
Podcasts | April 12, 2021
The Reconstruction: Seeing the world of our children’s children to help make the case for justice
ImpactAlpha, April 12 – Tiffany Manuel’s handbooks for social change warn about messaging “backfires.” These days, she’s wielding such tools to overcome backlash. …
Kathryn Finney of Genius Guild | Photo credit: kathrynfinney.com
Agents of Impact | April 9, 2021
Kathryn Finney, Genius Guild
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 9 – The entrepreneur and investor’s answer to systemic economic exclusion of Black, Indigenous and other people of color: Build an ecosystem …
Climate Finance
Climate and Clean Tech | May 13, 2021
Orion Energy Partners’ $1.1 billion fund taps investor appetite for energy transition
ImpactAlpha, May 13 – Orion’s Energy Credit Opportunities Fund III is the latest entrant into an increasingly crowded market for funds looking to …
Photo credit: Techcouver.
Climate and Clean Tech | May 10, 2021
Mitsubishi and South Pole partner to finance carbon-removal tech
ImpactAlpha, May 10 — Carbon removal technology that captures CO2 from the air, coupled with permanent storage, will be key to decarbonization efforts, …
Photo credit: Einride.
Clean Energy | May 10, 2021
Einride secures $110 million to expand electric freight transit in the U.S. and Europe
ImpactAlpha, May 10 — Einride integrates electric and autonomous vehicles to move commercial products. The Swedish company’s Einride Pod is a fully-electric driverless …
2030 Finance | May 6, 2021
Conservation of mangrove forests could get a boost from carbon credits
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – Farmers in Iowa and Illinois are getting $20 a ton for sequestering soil carbon. Tropical forests can collect $10 a …
Climate and Clean Tech | May 5, 2021
EnCap Investments raises $1.2 billion energy transition fund
ImpactAlpha, May 5 – Houston-based oil and gas private equity firm EnCap Investments has raised 22 institutional investment funds totaling roughly $38 billion …
Photo credit: Solidia Technologies.
Clean Energy | May 4, 2021
Breakthrough Energy Ventures backs three climate-tech startups
ImpactAlpha, May 4 — Breakthrough Energy Ventures collected another $1 billion at the start of this year to invest in up to 50 …
Photo credit: Solid Power
Clean Energy | May 4, 2021
Solid Power secures $130 million to scale EV battery production
ImpactAlpha, May 4 — Louisville, Colorado-based Solid Power develops solid-state batteries for electric vehicles that it says are cheaper, more efficient and safer …
2030 Finance | April 29, 2021
Paris-based Tikehau Capital launches private equity decarbonization fund for North America
ImpactAlpha, April 29 – Tikehau Capital has raised $300 million for its first North America-focused fund to invest in businesses supporting the transition to …
Photo credit: PosiGen
Clean Energy | April 29, 2021
PosiGen scores $27 million to bring low-cost solar energy to American households
ImpactAlpha, April 29 — New Orleans-based PosiGen is aiming to make solar energy accessible through low-cost rooftop solar panel leasing and energy efficiency …
Increase in global CO2 emissions
Climate Finance | April 28, 2021
That feeling when investors realize carbon is going to $100 a ton sooner than they expected
ImpactAlpha, April 28 – Carbon hasn’t attracted as much attention as GameStop or Bitcoin, but the price of a ton of CO2 topped …
Conservation | April 28, 2021
Who’s going to pay? Due diligence in conservation finance starts with the offtake agreement
Venture capitalists in many sectors have developed robust due-diligence practices. The conservation finance community and its catalytic investors are still learning what works. …
Africa | April 28, 2021
Off-Grid Market Development Fund offers results-based financing for solar access in Madagascar
Off-Grid Market Development Fund is providing subsidies to a dozen companies to deliver solar power in Madagascar. Only 14% of Madagascar’s 25.7 million …
Catalytic Capital
Motorbike taxi in Kampala, Uganda | Photo credit: Emre Topdemir
Africa | May 13, 2021
How Lendable parses risks and returns to mobilize capital for inclusive fintech in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, May 13 – There’s little argument about the positive impact of making affordable loans to small- and medium-size enterprises in countries like Indonesia, …
Africa | May 12, 2021
Acre Impact Capital bridges a financing gap to catalyze capital for infrastructure in Africa
ImpactAlpha, May 12 – Financing for emerging-markets infrastructure projects that have become more critical because of the pandemic – think hospitals – has become …
Photo credit: Reuters/Jean Bizimana photo.
Africa | May 12, 2021
CDC Group provides $100 million to help ETG connect smallholder farmers in Africa
ImpactAlpha, May 12 — CDC Group has committed $100 million in debt funding to agricultural commodities supplier ETG to expand its logistics networks …
Photo credit: Washingtonian.
Catalytic Capital | May 11, 2021
Capital Impact Partners to manage Nourish DC to fund local food businesses
ImpactAlpha, May 11 — Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Browser is tapping Arlington, Va.-based community development financial institution Capital Impact Partners to receive $1 …
Lake Street in Minneapolis, MN | Photo credit: Sam Wagner
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – The conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd sent a signal to residents of Minneapolis …
Source: Higher Purpose Co.
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
RSF Social Finance deploys capital from the Racial Justice Collaborative
ImpactAlpha, May 6 — RSF Social Finance has launched the Racial Justice Collaborative, a vehicle that aims to provide debt, equity and grant …
Photo credit: Algramo
Agrifood Tech | May 6, 2021
MIT’s Solve Innovation Future fund makes four early-stage investments
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – Solve Innovation Future, the investment arm of MIT Solve, has committed $1 million to eight companies that were finalists in …
Mason Music, a community-based music program at the newly renovated Woodlawn Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama | Photo credit: Mason Music
Catalytic Capital | April 29, 2021
Opportunity Alabama is combining community and capital to fulfill the potential of Opportunity Zones
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 29 – A senior-care facility in Heflin, Alabama, population 5,000. A restored hotel in Selma. Workforce housing and an historic theatre in …
Africa | April 28, 2021
Off-Grid Market Development Fund offers results-based financing for solar access in Madagascar
Off-Grid Market Development Fund is providing subsidies to a dozen companies to deliver solar power in Madagascar. Only 14% of Madagascar’s 25.7 million …
PC: Transport Topics.
Catalytic Capital | April 12, 2021
Social Finance raises $36 million for ‘career impact bonds’ and backs American Diesel Training
ImpactAlpha, April 12 — Career impact bonds are bringing income-share agreements, which dozens of universities are using to provide help to low-income students …
Catalytic Capital | April 6, 2021
How these wealthy families are driving outperformance on impact
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 6 – Investors willing and able to prioritize impact over financial returns were behind some of today’s highest-impact innovations. Catalytic investment strategies, …
Catalytic Capital | March 23, 2021
Rethinking economic development for an inclusive recovery
ImpactAlpha, March 23 – Policy makers are embracing bottom up strategies to address interlocking challenges if COVID-19, inequality and racial justice. The $1.9 …
Agents of Impact
Bold leaders. Taking action. Driving impact.