During my first week as an On Purpose associate I was lucky enough to be one of the 15 people attending a talk by Paul Cheng of CAF Venturesome on the role of financial intermediaries in the development of a social investment market. This was particularly interesting for me given my previous life as an investment banker.
Paul highlighted the stark contrast between the wide variety of ways that corporates can raise capital and the limited selection of funding mechanisms currently available in the social investment market, largely represented by grants and donations.
During my career I've seen the design of financial instruments driven by a number of factors, unfortunately these are not always for social good. Consider for example the role that complex credit derivatives have played in perpetuating the current debt crisis. Hopefully by ensuring that positive impact is the primary goal of social investment markets we can avoid the pitfalls of the traditional financial system.
On Purpose is in a great position to be part of this exciting field, with associates at Bridges Ventures and Big Society Capital you're sure to hear much more from us on the subject.
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