Investment Guidelines
The High Impact Businesses that GBF supports are scalable and replicable with the potential to provide economic and social opportunities to thousands at the BoP, yet they typically fall through a gap in the market because they require longer-term, quasi-equity financing not offered by local financing institutions or most investment funds. Many also require additional value-added services, including financial management assistance and marketing or operational expertise that cannot be readily sourced or financed from existing sources.
GBF invests in businesses that meet the following guidelines:
GBF Mission Fit Criteria
Base of Economic Pyramid (BoP) Empowerment Focus:
GBF seeks to invest in for-profit companies that have a strong commitment to bringing measurable and sustainable social and economic impact at the base of the economic pyramid (BoP).
Country Focus:
- Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana)
- Asia (India, Indonesia)
- Latin America (Bolivia, Peru)
Excited to Work with Us: GBF is a hands-on investor and seeks companies that are enthusiastic to work with us in a close partnership.
Financial Criteria
Investment Terms
- GBF seeks investments of $250,000 to $1,500,000.
- GBF is open to various investment structures including equity, quasi-equity, loans, and guarantees.
- GBF does not seek control of the company (in terms of equity ownership and/or voting rights).
- GBF expects to exit investments within a 5 to 7 year timeframe.
Preferred Situations GBF seeks opportunities where:
- GBF’s investment is key to scaling up the company, and,
- GBF represents less than 50% of company’s total capital base.
Impact Criteria
Impact Type:
- GBF invests in businesses that generate direct and significant incremental income / savings to their suppliers or customers.
- GBF prefers to work with companies that directly impact in the range of 500-2000 individuals, with potential to increase and scale at least 5-10 times over the period of the investment. Click here to learn more about GBF's Impact Planning, Assessment and Learning Framework (iPAL).
Environmental and Labor Responsibility:
- GBF invests in companies that are environmentally and socially responsible, and are interested in working with GBF to improve these areas where necessary.
- It is essential that the company have a strong management team with a successful history starting and/or managing companies, or has other industry experience and education.
Stage of Company:
- GBF prefers "growth stage" companies with a strong track record, but will consider early stage businesses on a case by case basis.
- GBF seeks companies that can protect their market position through high barriers to entry, first-mover advantage, high-quality differentiated products, etc.
