Gray Ghost DOEN Social Ventures Coöperatief

BUSINESS OVERVIEW

Gray Ghost Ventures acting as managers in collaboration with the DOEN Foundation have launched a $35 million social venture fund targeting investments that create social and economic value. Expanding upon the groundbreaking investment management work of Gray Ghost Ventures in building the Gray Matters Capital Foundation’s mission-related venture capital portfolio, this initiative excels at providing risk capital that is quick, flexible, and customized to the circumstances of the entrepreneur and the social venture. The

investment team specializes in executing and managing social venture capital investments sector in emerging and developing economies.

SOCIAL IMPACT

Our goal is to deploy needed financial resources and business expertise to high impact

social ventures addressing the needs of large, underserved populations. Each “social

venture” brings a combination of a social value proposition as well as a set of social impact

indicators. Our investment approach prioritizes social ventures that address a) access to

markets, information, knowledge and/or services; b) enhanced opportunities for productivity,

mobility and/or creativity; and c) expansion of efficiencies and time savings.

INVESTMENT APPROACH

 Stage: Seed and early-stage  Geography: 2/3rds India; 1/3rd Global

 Scope: 2/3rds ICT; 1/3rd Adapted Technologies  Investment Amount per Company: $500k-$3.5mm

Financial description

A market-based investment approach is key to addressing some of the world’s most challenging social issues.
A large market exists for goods and services that improve the lives of the underserved. While charitable interventions often seek to address this need, there is a break in the feedback loop when one party pays for a product or service and another party uses or benefits from it. A market-based approach provides a closed feedback loop, which can identify what is most beneficial to the end customers.
As products and services must have a low price point to be affordable to the poor, businesses that cater to low-income populations are challenged by slim margins. Therefore, for these businesses reaching millions of people is not only a social imperative, it is also a financial one: they must achieve scale to be profitable. Providing such businesses with appropriate financial and human capital will help them reach scale and create innovative solutions to enhance and empower the lives of the economically disadvantaged.