Using finance as a tool for social change
Leveraging each investment for good
Our Investments
Capital Sisters International
Capital Sisters International was created as a platform to advance economic justice and financial inclusion for marginalized women entrepreneurs in the informal sector. The mission of Capital Sisters International is to connect impoverished women in developing countries who need tiny business loans with investors willing to provide them. Capital Sisters delivers its mission through two programs, an Investment Program and an Advocacy Program. The Investment Program provides capital to microfinance institutions in developing countries. The Advocacy Program works to raise awareness about the need for more enabling public policy on financial inclusion.
CNote
CNote is an award-winning investment platform where you earn a better return while investing in the causes and communities that matter to you. CNote was founded on two core principles. That everyone deserves a shot at financial freedom and that each of us can play a part in building a more equal world.
Crowdfund Mainstreet
Crowdfund Mainstreet is all about bringing a new type of investor to the table. Until recently, investing in private businesses was mostly limited to wealthy, accredited, investors. This put a lot of pressure on small businesses and startups in particular to either “bootstrap it” (self-finance) or woo a very small group of professional investors with promises of rapid growth. The JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act went into effect in 2016, creating new rules which allow companies to raise capital from anyone through crowdfunding. Now regular people—not just wealthy or professional investors—can more easily invest in the small businesses they want to see prosper.
Cutting Edge Capital
CEC is developing innovative financing tools and entity structuring that help preserve mission and goals for new companies raising money. Nia's investment supports CEC to develop software that will bring down the cost and streamline the process of direct public offerings for small and medium sized businesses, allowing them to grow with mission intact.
I love Jenny and her women led team at CEC. I love that they are right here in Oakland, working with our local businesses to build and expand this space of conscious investing by developing the software and legal infrastructure needed to raise smaller increments of capital from a broader range of investors.
Force for Good Fund
The Force for Good Fund, from Lift Economy, nurtures, supports, and invests in women and people of color-owned, “Best for the World” B Corporations (i.e., companies that score in the top 10% of B Corps worldwide). This fund is needed because it is incredibly difficult for early-stage, socially and environmentally responsible businesses run by women and people of color to access non-extractive capital. The Force for Good Accelerator / Fund is an innovative opportunity to support these early-stage entrepreneurs with the guidance, access to capital, and connections they need in order to be successful.
HIP Investor
HIP investor has created 4 products available through the Schwab platform. In addition to being an impact money manager, HIP is developing standards to quantify impact. Nia is currently investing in the HIP 100 Portfolio: a re-weighting of the S&P 100 for quantifiable sustainability according to proprietary HIP criteria and analysis. For investors and advisers applying the "new fundamentals of investing," the HIP 100 Portfolio can complement or replace the current U.S. based equity allocations; and the HIP Preferred Stock Portfolio: weights a basket of U.S.-listed Preferred Stocks using a rigorous, data-driven analysis of quantifiable human, social and environmental results. HIP Portfolios seek to outperform traditional investment benchmarks via this strategy, striving to achieve more positive human impact, lower risk, and increased financial returns. HIP products also include The HIP Sustainable Real Estate Portfolio and the HIP Global Dividends Portfolio.
Paul Herman and his team work diligently to make social and environmental concerns paramount to the traditional investing world. He is doing quite a lot to raise awareness, inform clients and build products that celebrate companies making sustainable and values based choices.
Illumen Capital
Illumen Capital provides a pathway for investors, foundations, and family offices to access the world's top impact funds and actively reduce bias throughout global financial markets. By partnering with Stanford University, Illumen Capital creates and applies bias-reducing interventions to help venture capital and private equity fund managers unlock latent financial return and impact, to create a more equitable, empathetic, and prosperous world.
Impact Assets
ImpactAssets is a nonprofit financial services firm that increases the flow of capital into investments that deliver financial, social and environmental returns. Through their innovative Donor Advised Fund model, our funds are invested in Sevamob, Waste Capital Partners, and will soon be deployed into Clean NG, Lipisha, StreetOwl, and Save Energy Systems.
I have been impressed with Tim's trail blazing. I am honored to be investing in this DAF product that promises to revolutionize the way both individuals and institutions invest their charitable dollars. I also see great potential to channel more and diversified dollars to entrepreneurs doing good work. With a minimum investment of $2,500 per company, I see Impact Assests as lowering the bar to entry of impact venture investing, which is exciting.
Investibule
Investibule opens the door to a diverse range of investment opportunities in your community—whether that's the place where you live or groups you care about. The universe of community-based investments is growing, but remains highly fragmented. Investibule solves that problem by gathering community-based investment opportunities spanning Kiva, Credibles, Direct Public Offerings and JOBS Act-enabled crowdfunding offerings onto one easy-to-use platform. Investibule supports all forms of community capital and partners with community-based financial organizations for mutual benefit and to grow the movement.
MCE Social Capital
MCE Social Capital is a nonprofit impact investing firm that uses a pioneering loan guarantee model to generate economic opportunities for hundreds of thousands of people, particularly women, in more than 30 countries. More than two billion people in the world lack access to formal financial services—including savings accounts, insurance, and loans—and consequently must contend with financial insecurity on a daily basis. Small businesses also suffer from a lack of appropriate finance opportunities, despite their unique potential for transformative job creation and social impact. We help fill these financial inclusion gaps by funding: Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) that help people living in rural areas gain access to credit, savings accounts, insurance, healthcare and health education, business education, and technical assistance, and Small and Growing Businesses (SGBs) that create jobs, help smallholder farmers, facilitate clean water and energy, and increase household savings.
RSF Social Investment Fund
RSF Social Finance is a pioneering non-profit financial services organization dedicated to transforming the way the world works with money. In partnership with a community of investors and donors, RSF provides capital to non-profit and for-profit social enterprises addressing key issues in the areas of Food & Agriculture, Education & the Arts, and Ecological Stewardship.
I really love RSF for so many reasons. They are local and invest in, and loan to, the companies and organizations I care about. Don Shaffer is a key leader in our economy by transforming the way we interact with money. Their transparent process of business is exemplary and as an investor I get to have a say in how much interest I am earning.
Solar Mosaic
Crowd-funding style investment platform for large/commercial/community space solar installations.
Solar Mosaic is revolutionizing the way we do both energy and investing. For as little as $25 you can go on their website and choose a community solar project that you would like to invest in for an interest rate of 4-5%. Their team is taking this field to the next level and beyond in an inclusive and sustainable way, democratizing impact investing by lowering the minimums.
