Investing in Impact | Impact Investing

This content is for informational and entertainment purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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In this episode, I speak with Hardika Shah, Founder and CEO of Kinara Capital, on transforming lives and local economies, by providing access to capital for small business entrepreneurs.

Armed with a mission to empower the 70 million small business entrepreneurs in the country, Kinara has embarked on a journey to provide fast and flexible collateral-free business loans. Leveraging cutting-edge technology and a dedication to customer service, Kinara Capital revolutionized the lending landscape with its digital processes and doorstep assistance.

Over the years, the company has disbursed more than $300 million to over 40,000 small business entrepreneurs, ushering thousands into the realm of financial inclusion. This transformative journey has not only created jobs and spurred economic growth but has also generated over $100 million in incremental income for MSMEs across India.

Before embarking on her entrepreneurial journey, Hardika honed her skills as a management consultant, working on projects for global companies across the USA, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Her passion for social impact led her to devote nearly a decade to mentoring emerging social entrepreneurs.

At Kinara Capital, the mission is clear: to transform lives, livelihoods, and local economies by providing access to capital for every entrepreneur. With a vision of a financially inclusive world, Hardika and her team continue to pave the way for a brighter future for small business entrepreneurs across India.

I hope you enjoy the conversation, until next time, stay humble and stay creative.

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This content is for informational and entertainment purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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In episode 49 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Princess Aghayere & John Gough of ICA Fund, on working to close the gender and racial wealth gap in the Bay Area through investing in local entrepreneurs.

ICA Fund is a nonprofit organization that works to close the gender and racial wealth gap in the Bay Area by providing coaching, connections, and capital to entrepreneurs who have been overlooked by mainstream funders.

Through investment and mentorship initiatives, they help systemically underrepresented Bay Area entrepreneurs grow their businesses.

They are also committed to building an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Bay Area. ICA helps business owners increase their knowledge about how to start a business, develop resources needed for success, establish networks with other entrepreneurs, secure financing options that meet their needs, and position themselves for growth.

The ICA Impact Note: helping great business grow shared wealth

The new ICA Impact Note is an innovative investment structure that helps entrepreneurs prioritize social impacts–like good job creation, workforce diversity, and profit distribution–as they grow their business. Many founders set out to leverage their business to create change in their community, but those aims can be chipped away while growing and fundraising in a competitive landscape.

When a company receives investment through the ICA Impact Note, the business must define the measurable social impact they want to create and the trade-offs they’ll need to make in order to achieve them. The note is designed so that as impact milestones are met, the investor returns ownership percentages back to the company.

Through this structure, the investor and the company are able to work in real partnership to scale social returns for the community by growing a profitable business. The design of this note builds off of ICA’s 10 years of experience deploying capital for community-minded growth-stage businesses and is free to use by other investors working to prioritize social impact.

About Princess

Princess is an Investment Analyst at ICA and contributes to sourcing new investment prospects and conducting investment due diligence. She works cross-functionally across ICA, communicating portfolio company needs and identifying areas of growth.

Princess has experience working in a minority-owned private equity fund called IMB Partners and co-founded a non-profit called Rebound Liberia. The nonprofit empowers young women through basketball and leadership development. Following the launch of Rebound Liberia, Princess had a short stint playing professionally in Spain in the LF2 league.

Princess graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor’s in Health and Societies and a minor in International Development. Outside of work, she loves traveling and is an avid basketball fan. She believes entrepreneurship is one of the most effective ways to promote economic growth and development. She hopes to facilitate ICA's mission of advising and providing capital for high potential businesses to address the gender and racial wealth gap.

About John

John serves as Chief Investment Officer at ICA, a venture-capital CDFI and 501(c)(3) non-profit investment fund, focused on creating good jobs, funding women and entrepreneurs of color, and driving economic opportunity and ownership for employees. John leads the organization’s Investment team, and oversees the development, funding, and implementation of the ICA Growth Fund and Seed Equity Fund.

John has over 20 years’ experience in corporate finance, international banking, impact investing, and has held executive leadership and operating roles in entrepreneurial ventures. John believes that supportive and patient capital can be used to reach, serve, and bring meaningful change to communities.

Prior to ICA, John founded True North Capital Management LLC, an investment management business focused on public equities impact and essential services investing. John also served as Head of Global Corporate Banking in Asia-Pacific for Wells Fargo, living with his family in Hong Kong for 9 years; Managing Director at LoopNet Inc (NASDAQ: “LOOP”), a venture capital start-up; Farallon Capital in San Francisco; and Grameen Bank, a micro-credit lender in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

John serves as a Board observer for Firebrand Artisan Breads, and Advisor to NowHer.org focused on Philippines social impact an...

This content is for informational and entertainment purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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In episode 14 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Liesel Pritzker Simmons & Ian Simmons, founders of Blue Haven Initiative, on using innovative impact investing to enhance competitive returns and positive social and environmental change.

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Liesel Pritzker Simmons is Co-Founder and Principal of Blue Haven Initiative, where she oversees, as an investment strategist, a portfolio focused on holdings that generate competitive financial returns and address social and environmental challenges. The portfolio spans asset classes, from traditional equities and direct investments to philanthropic programs.

Liesel co-founded Blue Haven with her husband, Ian Simmons. Together, they systematically assessed their portfolios based on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) criteria and financial performance. The restructured portfolios became the foundation of Blue Haven, one of the first family offices created with impact investing as its focus.

Liesel is also Co-Founder of IDP Foundation, a private Chicago-based foundation focused on achieving universal primary education. There, she helped create the IDP Rising Schools Program, which leverages microfinance networks to empower nearly 450 low-cost private schools—established and managed by local entrepreneurs—in some of the least-developed regions of the world.

Ian Simmons is Co-Founder and Principal of Blue Haven Initiative, where he oversees a portfolio focused on investments that generate competitive financial returns and address social and environmental challenges. This portfolio spans asset classes, including private and public equity, fixed income, direct investments, alternative investments and philanthropic programs.

Committed to initiatives and corporations that advance investing and strengthen democracy, Ian is the President of the Foundation for Civic Leadership and Chair of the Youth Engagement Fund. Ian serves on the board of directors of the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, Social Finance, Issue One, Organizing for Action, the National Advisory Board for Public Service at Harvard College, and Karibu Homes, an affordable-housing company in Kenya.

Blue Haven Initiative IS One of the first family offices created with impact investing as its mission and focus, Blue Haven seeks market rates of financial return on its investments as well as maximum social and environmental impact. It applies a rigorous portfolio-management lens to for-profit and philanthropic capital with the goal of aligning financial performance and public benefit. With this approach, Blue Haven considers the nuanced ramifications of its investment choices while pursuing financial returns appropriate to each asset class or venture.

When investing, Blue Haven seeks to put capital to work in highly productive ways: helping mission-driven projects and companies achieve scale, supporting entrepreneurs whose innovations spur change, and partnering with other investors to accelerate economic progress. Active in frontier markets and in the United States, its in-house team and their advisors are dedicated to sourcing direct investments, conducting due diligence and managing its portfolio over time. In addition to funding early-stage, innovative businesses that improve standards of living, create economic opportunity, and deliver products and services cleanly and efficiently to underserved communities, Blue Haven also invests in traditional asset classes through third-party investment managers.

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In Episode 68 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Robert Keith, the Founder and Managing Principal of Beartooth, on how environmental stewardship can be synonymous with financial gains.

Robert holds a strong belief that the diverse financial tools and innovative growth/exit strategies available to small business owners should also be accessible to ranch owners. With this vision, he co-founded Beartooth in 2005 to empower ranchers with these resources.

In his role at Beartooth, Robert oversees all operations, with a particular emphasis on cultivating meaningful relationships in capital sourcing, investment structuring, and management.

Before establishing Beartooth, Robert gained valuable experience at various financial institutions, including an agricultural investment company, a private equity investment firm, and Morgan Stanley, an investment bank. He holds a degree in Economics from Yale University and a business degree from Stanford University.

Despite his academic and professional pursuits, Robert consistently found himself drawn back to his family's ranch near Cody, Wyoming. Eventually, he made the decision to cease commuting to coastal regions for work and instead founded Beartooth to pursue his passion for supporting ranchers and their communities.

About Beartooth

Beartooth Group is a Bozeman-based conservation investment firm. Founded in 2004, Beartooth partners with ranch sellers, owners, investors, and buyers to restore and steward the lands, waters, and wildlife of the American West. Beartooth does this by crafting creative solutions to conservation and economic challenges.

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Thrive in the Impact Economy.

Join 20k+. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for the latest news, exclusive interviews, and curated products that drive the Impact Economy. Our mission is to highlight and celebrate the founders, creators, investors, and conscious brands shaping the future of conscious business and philanthropy.

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This content is for informational and entertainment purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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In episode 33 of the Investing in Impact podcast, I speak with Michael Pellman Rowland, Impact Expert and Board Member at Baseline Wealth Management, on the future of food technology and how it helps mitigate the threats of climate change.

Michael previously worked as a Senior Vice President in wealth management for 15 years at Morgan Stanley in New York. He specializes in portfolio management, financial planning, and impact investing.

Michael graduated with an economics degree from Hamilton College and has held Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Accredited Domestic Partnership Advisor (ADPA) designations. He is an active thought leader in impact investing and was recently included in the inaugural list of Forbes Top Millennial Wealth Advisors. He is passionate about food sustainability and has a column on Forbes.com that covers the ‘future of food.’ Michael and his wife dedicate a large part of their free time to animal welfare.

About Baseline Wealth

Baseline's mission is to make a difference for their clients, while also delivering financial returns. Environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations can help decide where best to invest. By putting ESG factors at the heart of their investment process, the company believes they can generate outcomes for clients while also addressing some of the greatest challenges on Earth.

Baseline has developed a robust in-house expertise on ESG investments, and apply this knowledge to client portfolios so that it aligns perfectly with financial and personal goals. As an extension of this initiative, the company leverages its expertise in Impact investing, sourcing unique and bespoke investment opportunities that are positively reshaping the world as we know it.

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Thrive in the Impact Economy.

Join 20k+. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for the latest news, exclusive interviews, and curated products that drive the Impact Economy. Our mission is to highlight and celebrate the founders, creators, investors, and conscious brands shaping the future of conscious business and philanthropy.

To learn more, please visit causeartist.com