Every week, we read dozens of articles on our favorite industry trends and relate to our investment thesis. We pick the most popular trend from the week and share the top articles along with our thoughts.
This week, we’re featuring news on financial innovation and impact investing.
“How Financial Innovation Can Save the World” by David Bank on The Atlantic
Some think that investors will be likely to shy away from financial innovations after the most recent financial crisis. This does not have to be the case: from MBA students in the International Impact Investing Challenge to meetings of the country’s highest net worth individuals, impact investing solutions show that redirecting the beneficiaries of financial innovations could create a significant impact around the world.
“Weekly Roundup: Extending Customer Credit – The Way to Scale?” by Scott Anderson on NextBillion
Our latest effort in financial innovation was featured on NextBillion’s Weekly Roundup. Check out our answers to common questions on the IFF and how our efforts are related to VisionSpring’s major milestone: 1 million sales.
“Two bright lights in India’s Impact Investing Landscape” on TechSangam
TechSangam, a blog that covers social enterprise in India, points out the two “bright lights” in impact investing in India. The first is SELCO founder Harish Hande’s Sustainable Energy Fund: a $10 million fund for sustainable energy enterprises. The second is Khosla Impact, which co-founded Vinod Khosla, one of India’s most successful entrepreneurs. Both Hande and Khosla have had entrepreneurial success and are now channeling that through venture capital and impact investments in India.
“Gateways to Impact: Industry Survey of Financial Advisors on Sustainable and Impact Investing”
A new report funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and launched by the Calvert Foundation indicates that financial advisers are increasingly showing interest in sustainable and impact-focused investments. The report reviews best practices and advice for optimizing impact for high net-worth individuals. The report, “Gateways to Impact” is available for download here (PDF).
New here?
- Learn about what we do.
- Follow us on Twitter.
- Like us on Facebook.
- Join us on LinkedIn.
- Sign up for our mailing list.
- Catch up on past Weekly Reviews.
- Got an alternative energy or mobile tech startup for emerging markets? Apply.