Women Leaders In Sustainable Finance: Modeling The Future – Part 6

Left to right: Dulari Amin, Principal at Synergy Ventures and Eva Yazhari, CEO of Beyond Capital Fund. Photo courtesy of Amin and Yazhari.

Editor’s Note: This is the sixth in a series of articles. To read other articles in the series, click here: article 1, article 2, article 3, article 4, article 5

Over the past four months I have interviewed 18 women who are trendsetters and innovators in the impact and sustainable finance sector. These women leaders are clear about today's capital market opportunities and risks. They are embracing both as the investment industry transitions toward a low carbon economy with greater emphasis on the economic value of intangible corporate assets and social impact enterprises.

These women are using their industry experience and leadership platforms to articulate a powerful message at the system level of financial services. They believe non-financial data is integral to the full understanding of a company’s potential to meet its stated goals for all stakeholders.

Second Generation Impact Networks

The conviction in her voice is palpable when Eva Yazhari, CEO of Beyond Capital Fund, speaks “The generation of impact investors before ours built the foundation for what we’re doing today.” She continues, “They paved the way, making early stage grassroots strategies possible.” Before the Acumen Fund and others demonstrated a combination of social impact and profitability, according to Yazhari, the idea that startup stage investors in places like rural Africa and India could make money was almost unthinkable.

Yazhari has 14 years of experience working in the impact investment, venture capital and asset management industries. She co-founded Beyond Capital Fund in 2009 as a nonprofit, social impact fund that invests in for-profit social enterprises throughout India and East Africa.

Beyond Capital board member, Dulari Amin, joins the conversation from her perspective, which includes having grown up in rural India. “I grew up in a small town in India where most organizations were government funded. There was no transparent way to measure impact,” she says, “because the framework for that did not exist.” Despite the many budding entrepreneurs financing terms were not available through the banks, which focused on asset-backed business models and considered the entrepreneurial business model too risky. There were no private sector organizations like Beyond Capital to build transparency and measurable impact into the entrepreneurial startup model.

Amin is a Principal at Synergy Ventures. She invests in and is an advisor to early stage and growth companies. Her focus is consumer brands and disruptive technologies. Previously, she was co-founder and president of Phenomenon, a brand strategy and creative agency. From 2006-2017, she boot-strapped Phenomenon to over 120 employees.