The Grassroots Business Fund (GBF), a nonprofit investment fund founded in 2008 by former World Bank employee Harold Rosen, has made 32 investments worth a total of USD 8.4 million in small and medium-size enterprises in Africa, Asia and Latin America as of May 2011. Investees have included Latco International, a Bolivian producer and exporter of sesame seeds, and Hai Tanzania, a cocoa trading company. GBF is currently seeking USD 60 million in an effort to scale its “hybrid” business model, which employs a combination of grants and for-profit investments that seek to generate “low double-digit returns to investors.” According to Mr Rosen, “half a dozen or so” angel investors plan to invest a total of “between USD 100,000 and USD 1 million” [1].
GBF was founded with USD 15 million in funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, and an additional USD 6 million from ten individual donors. GBF’s typical investments are for USD 750,000 over five to eight years in an effort to invest in businesses that struggle to attract funding from traditional sources, that have been in operation for two to three years and generate up to USD 2 million in sales.
By: Alexandra Pattee, Research Associate
About Grassroots Business Fund (GBF): Grassroots Business Fund (GBF) is a nonprofit investment fund. GBF was founded in 2008 by former World Bank employee Harold Rosen, in an effort to invest in business that struggle to attract funding from traditional sources. GBF was founded with USD 15 million in funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, and an additional USD 6 million from ten individual donors. GBF’s typical investments are for USD 750,000 over five to eight years. GBF invests in companies that have been in operation for two to three years and generate up to USD 2 million in sales. As of May 2011, GBF has made 32 investments worth USD 8.4 million in small and medium-size enterprises in Africa, Asian and Latin America.
About International Finance Corporation (IFC): A member of the World Bank Group, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) offers loans, equity investments, advisory services and technical assistance to private companies with the intent of alleviating poverty and promoting open and competitive markets in developing countries. As of 2011, IFC has 182 member countries that drive its policies and approve disbursements. As of June 30, 2010, IFC reports net income of USD 1.75 billion, total assets of USD 61 billion, return on assets of 3.1 percent and total investment mobilization of USD 18.4 billion to 528 projects.
Sources and Resources:
[1] Forbes, “World Bank Vet Seeks $60 Million To Back Entrepreneurs”, http://blogs.forbes.com/helencoster/2011/05/10/world-bank-vet-seeks-60-million-to-back-entrepreneurs/
MicroCapital Universe Profile: International Finance Corporation (IFC), https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=International+Finance+Corporation+%28IFC%29
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Grassroots Business Fund (GBF), Linked included once approved
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