From Blueprint to Scale ~ Savvy Impact Investing

Thanks to Acumen founder Jacqueline Novogratz for spotlighting From Blueprint to Scale: The Case for Philanthropy in Impact Investing, a new study by Monitor's Harvey Koh, Ashish Karamchandani, and Robert Katz which reports that...

"There is growing interest in the role of market-based solutions in addressing the problems of poverty, through inclusive businesses that tap into the potential of the global poor as customers and suppliers -- the so-called ‘fortune at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP).’ Encouraged by the growth of microfinance, many promising new models are emerging. This has elicited a rush to the new field of ‘impact investing’ -- producing social or environmental good as well as financial return -- with hundreds of funds set up in just a few years and billions of dollars waiting to be invested. But many investors report that they are struggling to find good opportunities in which to invest for impact. [Indeed] impact capital alone will not unlock the potential of impact investing for the global poor. Because of the extreme challenges facing those who are pioneering new models for inclusive business, truly realizing the impact in impact investing will require more, not less, philanthropy, and will need that philanthropic support to be delivered in new ways."

Read the full report.