Be a Funding Magnet: How Mission-Aligned Partners Catalyze Mainstream Investment

“We don’t finance that type of work.” “We don’t understand your model.” “It’s just too risky.”

Every founder of a mission-driven organization has encountered this type of skepticism from mainstream lenders. That’s why mission-aligned lenders play such an important role in the impact finance space: they take the first bet, prove that impact is investible, and help social enterprises “crowd in” the mainstream funding they need to scale their impact. 

In this session, hear from three leaders in the impact finance space about how to make sure these “first bet” deals catalyze growth and amplify impact.

Jasper van Brakel, CEO of San Francisco-based lender RSF, will share real-life examples of how initial loans from RSF helped social enterprises scale their working capital and their impact. He will also provide insights on what investors are looking for and how social enterprises can position themselves and their products to attract mission-aligned capital. 

Omar Blayton, CFO of Cambridge-based clean energy investment firm Sunwealth, will describe how an RSF investment catalyzed Sunwealth’s own growth — and how the firm is paying it forward by prioritizing solar projects that mainstream finance won’t support. He will also explore the benefits and challenges of partnering with a mission-aligned investor and the challenges Sunwealth encountered when seeking other sources of capital. 

Nzinga Broussard, Senior Director of Impact Measurement at Sorenson Impact, will share how she helps RSF and other impact lenders measure the impact of catalytic capital across their portfolios. She’ll also delve into how social enterprises can demonstrate achieved and potential impact at early stages in order to attract mission-aligned investors.