opportunity with LeapFrog

LeapFrog Fellowship

LeapFrog Investments, the world's first microinsurance fund, is looking for outstanding and dynamic young leaders to join us as Global Fellows.

 

Are you passionate about market‐driven solutions to poverty?

Do you want to be on the forefront of innovation in microfinance and alternative investment?

Do you want to apply your skills in financial analysis, private equity, or insurance to help change the lives of

25 million poor people?

 

LeapFrog Investments

LeapFrog invests in businesses that provide insurance to low‐income and vulnerable people in Africa and Asia.

The fund targets strong financial returns for investors while expanding a growing portfolio to provide valuable

insurance products to reaching 25 million people with insurance – 15 million of them women and children.

The role

This is a unique chance to work as an Investment Associate with a cutting‐edge organization in microfinance,

and the industry leader in microinsurance. Fellows will help LeapFrog to source and act on exciting investment

opportunities, and to grow the microinsurance sector. Working directly with the LeapFrog Principals, Fellows'

responsibilities can include financial modeling, investment due diligence, industry analysis, day‐to‐day

operations, marketing and transaction support. There will also be opportunities to work directly with our

portfolio companies, helping their high‐impact businesses grow and succeed. Flexibility and initiative are

essential to thriving in LeapFrog's entrepreneurial environment.

Commitment

The role requires a minimum 12 month commitment. Fellows will be staffed to LeapFrog's offices in Sydney,

Johannesburg or Edinburgh and may indicate a preference at the time of application. LeapFrog will cover

flights to and from the placement country, accommodation, and work‐related travel expenses. Fellows are

expected to secure their own funding for other living expenses – LeapFrog will assist in this process.

Impact

This intensive one‐year work experience will provide Fellows with hands‐on professional development

opportunities, allowing them to hone their skills and deepen their understanding of microinsurance and

impact investing. The role is also designed to deepen Fellows' own leadership capacity – working daily with

and learning from industry pioneers. Each Fellow's work will help grow the movement to sustainably protect

and enable the world's most vulnerable people. Together, LeapFrog Fellows will form a cohort of like‐minded

changemakers, poised to change the world and markets around them.

Experience

Ideal candidates will have had significant demonstrated experience in business analysis – including financial

modeling, monitoring and evaluation, and/or forecasting and project costing. Candidates with legal training

will have transaction or insurance experience at a highly respected firm. Experience in developing markets –

particularly in LeapFrog's target countries in Africa and Asia – will be considered a significant advantage, as

well as experience in microfinance, insurance or impact investing.

 

Additional skills sought:

• 3‐5 years experience in private equity, insurance, investment banking, management consulting, or law
• MBA or advanced degree in Commerce, Finance, Economics, Actuarial Science, Law or related field

OR significant and comparable experience

• Complex financial modeling experience including DCF and valuations; transaction or insurance
• experience for candidates with a law background
• PowerPoint proficiency
• A sound understanding of financial statements and analysis
• A can‐do and collaborative mindset – comfort with the ambiguities and demands of a rapidly evolving environment
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written

Interested and qualified candidates should send their CV and cover letter before January 15th, 2010 to Rachael

Neumann, with "LeapFrog Labs: Fellowship" in the title, at rachaelneumann@leapfroginvest.com

Placements will commence on March 1st, 2010. A later start date (around June 1st, 2010) is possible for

candidates graduating this year.

About us

LeapFrog Investments Ltd created and manages the world's first microinsurance fund. Launched with

President Bill Clinton in 2008, LeapFrog has raised $47 million to date from banks, funds, and microfinance and

insurance investors. Its profit‐with‐purpose investment approach has been hailed by many global leaders as a

new frontier for microfinance and alternative investment. In the recent Closing Plenary of the Clinton Global

Initiative 2009, President Clinton hailed LeapFrog as "Insurer to the Poor".

Learn more at: www.leapfroginvest.com

LeapFrog Labs

LeapFrog Investments also runs a not‐for‐profit technical assistance facility out of its Edinburgh office called

LeapFrog Labs. LeapFrog Labs is a separate, grant‐funded research and development facility. It aims to tackle

some of the toughest barriers to access to financial services for low‐income people. Labs administers the

Fellowship program.

Learn more about Labs at: http://www.leapfroginvest.com/labs.php

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________

CHRISTINE STEARN | Columbia Business School |  EMBA 2010 expected |  w: gsb.columbia.edu

 

 

 

Root Capital Receives PRI and Grant From Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Root Capital Announced as Recipient of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's First Agricultural Development Program-Related Investment


$10 million investment and $4 million grant will expand economic
opportunities for 500,000 rural households in Africa



Root Capital was announced today as the recipient of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s first program-related investment (PRI) from its Agricultural Development initiative. Root Capital will use the six-year, $10 million PRI as loan capital to scale its operations in Sub-Saharan Africa. The investment will expand economic opportunities for more than 500,000 rural households by enabling Root Capital to extend access to credit, financial management training, and global market opportunities for small and growing rural businesses. The $4 million operating grant will support Root Capital’s five-year growth plan to achieve a financially self-sustainable lending program by 2013.

“Providing access to capital, financial training, and global markets empowers businesses to grow, communities to thrive, and economies to flourish,” said William Foote, Founder and CEO of Root Capital. “Root Capital is honored to receive funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to connect smallholder farmers and other rural producers in Sub-Saharan Africa to global markets. We aspire to catalyze broader change in the capital markets that will truly impact global poverty and improve livelihoods for the rural poor.”

“Access to the types of financial services provided by Root Capital is a critical enabling factor in the development of efficient agricultural markets and the entire value chain,” said Lutz Goedde, deputy director of the Agricultural Development initiative at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “By funding these services, we hope to provide small farmers and their families opportunities to increase their incomes and lift themselves out of hunger and poverty.”

To read the full press release, click here .

For all press inquiries, contact Lara Cote: lcote@rootcapital.org

Lunch with Reuben Abraham THIS Monday, Dec. 14

Hi all,

Reuben has agreed to have lunch with us on Monday from 1230-130pm at the Rockefeller Foundation (420 Fifth Avenue at 37th Street (entrance on north side of 37th on NW corner)). He sits on the Board of the Soros Economic Development Fund which is meeting later that afternoon.

 

He will discuss his work at the Indian School of Business where he is setting out to build the world's best center for research and practical experimentation on business models for serving poor customers. He will specifically focus on his involvement in the recent launch of a housing development and finance company (backed with commercial VC money) focused on building low-income housing for India's slumdwellers. This will be an informal discussion.

 

Reuben received an MBA and PhD from CBS and is increasingly well-known as an iconoclastic writer and public intellectual challenging prevailing views about bottom-of-the-pyramid business and development generally.

 

Please email Mara directly, or reply to this post, if you are sure you can come. We can host a maximum of 8 students so if more than 8 of you have confirmed by Sunday at 4pm we will randomly select the people who can attend.

 

If you do come, please try and get to Rockefeller a few minutes early so that we can get you through security and to the conference room (I will provide a simple lunch) to make the most use of Reuben's time with us.

Thanks,
Prof. Bugg-Levine

Agora Partnerships NY Young Professionals Board

I'm currently working with Agora Partnerships to identify 5-7 individuals to form our pilot New York Young Professionals Board. Please feel free to forward this information along to anyone that you think might be interested in being a part of this. Thanks for your help!

Agora Partnerships’ mission is to give developing world entrepreneurs the management tools, networks and financing needed to launch successful, socially-responsible companies. The organization works to find great entrepreneurs and give them practical, hands-on help and provides them with the opportunity to obtain equity financing from an investment fund specifically designed for them.

These individuals will be responsible for:

1) Fundraising for the nonprofit organization

2) Publicizing Agora and our model  

3) Providing advice, perspectives, and support to the organization.

We are looking for people:

1) Interested in Latin America,

2) Interested in economic development or social entrepreneurship,

3) With appropriate professional expertise, and

4) Committed to the goals of Agora

If you are interested please email your resume with a cover letter to Emma Taylor at ETaylor@agorapartnerships.org.

The deadline to apply is December 15th (but this may be flexible).

Please see the website for more information regarding Agora's model and current projects and feel free to contact me with any questions!

http://agorapartnerships.org/community/ny-young-professionals-board


Best,

Melissa


Melissa Cheong
mcheong09@gsb.columbia.edu
(646) 642-2560

Questions for session 11

Taking Stock of Microfinance: Does it really help the poor?

Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009 

Time: 6:30-8:30 pm

Location: Warren Hall, room 208

RSVP appreciated but not required: Please click here

 

While microfinance has been hailed as one of the most effective tools for development and poverty alleviation, critics of microfinance argue that microfinance institutions don't serve the poorest of the poor and may actually increase poverty by burdening the poor with unpayable debt.  From a donor perspective, such institutions may be financially unstable and may not deliver as well as promised on indicators of social well-being.  SIPA's Microfinance Working Group invites you to join us for a special panel discussion on the social impacts of microfinance: Taking Stock of Microfinance: Does it Really Help the Poor.

 

Panelists:

1.       Jonathan Morduch, Professor of Economics and Public Policy at NYU, Director of Financial Access Initiative, and leading researcher in the field of microfinance and impact evaluation.

2.       Richard Rosenberg, Senior Advisor to the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (a World Bank unit), former Deputy Director of USAID’s Center for Economic Growth.

3.       Micol Pistelli, Director of the Social Performance Program at the Mix Market .

4.       Janiece Green, Director of the Women's Market at Women's World Banking

Moderator: Louise Schneider, Vice President of Global Social Investment at Deutsche Bank and Former Senior Director of Capital Markets at Women’s World Banking.

 

Kiva's lack of trasparency?

A couple of people in class sent out articles about David Roodman's Microfinance Open Book Blog on Kiva's lack of trasparency.
Enjoy the back to back with the founder of Kiva, Matt Flannery

http://blogs.cgdev.org/open_book/2009/10/matt-flannery-kiva-ceo-and-co-founder-replies.php