The FHI Ventures team is pleased to present its 2018–2019 Impact Report. Since its 2018 launch, FHI Ventures has worked in close collaboration with FHI 360, the FHI Foundation and many other strategic partners to select and invest in nine companies solving pressing problems in water, sanitation, healthcare and fintech. This impact report provides an important tool for reflecting on the value of impact investing in creating a more equitable future and the role of innovative financing and partnerships in driving the UN sustainable development goals.

One of the biggest opportunities that our accelerator program provided was the ability to connect FHI Ventures-supported social enterprises with the expansive FHI 360 platform. Throughout this process, we prioritized sustainability and maintained close relationships with our investments and partners. We also prioritized gender-lens investing in our second year, and we continue our commitment to greater diversity, equity and inclusion in our investments, as well as to expanding our global networks to strategic regions. Finally, in 2019, we entered into an exciting collaboration the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) to advise and develop their Navigating Impact Education strategies and metrics.

FHI Ventures is fortunate to work with amazing partners, entrepreneurs and investors around the world and we look forward to continued collaboration. Moving forward, as we expand our footprint in the global impact investing space, we will continue to build an equity-based fund focused on female empowerment and growing our global networks to strategic regions. For any inquiries on the FHI Ventures Fund, please contact Wellington Pak.

View the report

FHI 360, Humentum, and Kito Global, along with the International Non-Governmental Organization (INGO) Impact Investing Network published their new report ‘Amplify Impact Investing: the Next Mile of Impact Investing for INGOs – a two year-update of the inaugural report launched in 2016 ‘Amplify Impact Investing: the INGO Value Proposition for Impact Investing‘. FHI Ventures Principal, Priyanka Rao contributed to this report by co-writing the chapter ‘The Case for INGO-Run Accelerators’ with Robert Haynie from spring Accelerator. The chapter features our distinctive imprint on the impact investing ecosystem, by  leveraging unique assets to add distinct value that differentiates us from other investors and intermediaries.

This in-depth study reveals:

INGOs in impact investing are growing. Since the INGOs in Impact Investing Network launched in 2015, there has been explosive growth in interest and activity in impact investing among INGOs. For this survey, 45 INGOs submitted responses, a 45% increase from the 2016 survey. These organizations collectively represent $10.5 billion in annual revenue with 98,000 employees globally. INGOs are increasingly playing the role of investor and currently manage at least $916.7 million in assets.

INGOs are focusing on the unique niche they can fill. In their early explorations of impact investing, INGOs brought their traditional resource development lens to the ecosystem, seeing impact investments as potential sources of revenue for their organizations. As their understanding of the field has matured, INGOs are engaging in increasingly sophisticated ways, with conversations centering on creating new approaches to facilitating capital flows to high impact businesses.

INGOs are evolving, with impact investing as just one example of the business model innovation underway. International development funding and delivery is in the midst of a profound period of disruption. INGOs are now experimenting with new business models, are designing next generation corporate partnerships, and launching new revenue models for their organization’s existing services.

As the traditional lines between sectors increasingly blur, INGOs involved in impact investing are defining themselves less and less by where they came from and more and more by what they can do and where they want to go. Impact investing is just one piece of the exciting story of INGO transformation.

Organizations in the INGO Impact Investing Network contributing chapters to this report include: FHI 360, Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs, Catholic Relief Services, Center for International Private Enterprise, Heifer International, Kito Global, Mennonite Economic Development Associates, Mercy Corps, New Markets Lab, Pact, SPRING Accelerator, and World Vision.

The INGO Impact Investing Network was formed in 2015 by Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs, GOAL, Humentum, Mercy Corps, and Pact and is now a consortium of more than 55 INGOs working together to gather and share knowledge about how INGOs are using private investment capital to advance their work in solving pressing global development challenges.

Read the full report on the Humentum website.

DURHAM, NC — Social entrepreneurs will showcase their solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges before potential investors at FHI Ventures’ first Investor Forum and Pitch Day on November 7, 2018. FHI Ventures, the social impact investment subsidiary of FHI 360 that launched in May, has partnered with five seed-stage social enterprises and provided them with both capital investment and support to de-risk and expand their businesses. The Investor Forum and Pitch Day will take place in Durham, North Carolina, home to FHI Ventures’ headquarters and a hub for its North Carolina network of investors, entrepreneurs and strategic partners.

The event marks this first cohort’s successful completion of Ventures’ rigorous, six-month, social enterprise accelerator program. The five social entrepreneurs will give brief presentations on how they are innovating to drive market value, performance and social impact. The day will also feature a panel discussion by social impact investing experts on topics including opportunity zones, emerging market trends, digital disruption and innovative financing models.

Describing his experience in the FHI Ventures accelerator program, Giffin Daughtridge, Chief Executive Officer of UrSure, Inc., said, “As entrepreneurs, we are advised to seek ‘smart money’ from our investors. After going through this six-month program, receiving weekly coaching from social startup experts, and gaining access to the entire FHI 360 global network, I can safely say there was no smarter money for UrSure than FHI Ventures. While the investment is great, the amount of additional resources and the network that comes with ‘being part of the FHI 360 family’ proved to be an accelerator for us in every sense of the word.”

The five companies supported by FHI Ventures are:

• FyodorBio — maker of a urine test that can rapidly diagnose malaria
• Mark Labs — developer of a technology platform that helps investors quantify social impact
• Sanivation — provider of a sanitation service to transform waste into an affordable fuel source
• SweetSense — creator of low-cost, remote monitoring sensors designed for the global development sector
• UrSure, Inc. — producer of a patient-friendly urine test that supports adherence to HIV prevention drugs

FHI Ventures President Wellington Pak explains the FHI Ventures investment strategy as, “a reflection of our insights and experience, as well as our knowledge of key drivers in the international development industry. Our investments in these five companies recognize the fundamentally disruptive role of emerging digital technologies; the rising demand for self-administered diagnostics and more effective preventive health and wellness tools; and the need to expand access to sanitation, energy and other services in a clean and sustainable way.”

To learn more about FHI Ventures and the Investor Forum and Pitch Day or to connect with any of these five companies, contact Priyanka Rao, FHI Ventures Principal, at prao@fhiventures.com. If you are part of, or know of, a company that would like to be considered for participation in the FHI Ventures social enterprise facilitator, visit www.fhiventures.com.

About FHI Ventures

FHI Ventures is a social enterprise accelerator investing in and supporting late-seed-stage enterprises on track to deliver strong financial performance and high social impact. FHI Ventures works exclusively with social enterprises that have launched a new product or service designed for social good but are not yet earning significant revenue. By providing businesses with capital support, customized training and access to expertise and new markets, we position them to show viable financial returns that attract additional investment. FHI Ventures is a subsidiary of FHI 360, a nonprofit human development organization dedicated to improving lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions. Learn more at www.fhiventures.com.

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA — After a rigorous selection process, GAN (gan.co) welcomes FHI Ventures into its highly-curated community of more than 90 independent accelerators, partners and investors.  

“We are thrilled to join such an impressive group of like-minded social investors as part of GAN,” said Wellington Pak, President of FHI Ventures. “The network truly understands the needs and challenges that new social impact ventures face and will provide the inroads with potential partners that create opportunities to attract additional investment”, said Priyanka Rao, Principal of FHI Ventures. 

FHI Ventures, a subsidiary of FHI 360, recently announced their first cohort class of five early-stage social impact companies and will be providing them with the support and funding they need to scale up their offerings.  

The FHI Ventures accelerator will address the specific needs of each social enterprise through a customized training curriculum with a unique management approach that aims to measure the impact these companies make. FHI Ventures-supported companies will also have access to support from FHI 360’s world-class experts in health, education, and economic development, as well as its global platform in more than 60 countries, which will facilitate market testing and distribution.  

FHI Ventures recently announced their inaugural cohort and arranged for the companies to meet with the experts and mentors who will be assisting with their market positioning and acceleration.  The Spring class will prepare for a “pitch day” to investors in Durham, North Carolina this Fall before the next cohort of companies joins the 6-month FHI Ventures program. 

About FHI Ventures 

FHI Ventures is a social enterprise accelerator supporting early stage businesses with the potential for high impact and a commitment to delivering social and financial returns. FHI Ventures works exclusively with early stage social enterprises that have launched a new product or service designed for social good, but are not yet earning significant revenue. By providing businesses with capital support, customized training, and access to expertise and new markets, we position them to show viable financial returns that attract additional investment. FHI Ventures is a subsidiary of FHI 360, a nonprofit human development organization dedicated to improving lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions. Learn more at www.fhiventures.com