IMPACTASSETS 50™
An Annual Showcase of Impact Investment Fund Managers
ImpactAssets 50
An Annual Showcase of Impact Investment Fund Managers
Mission Driven Finance, LLC
Affordable Housing & Community Development
Small/Medium Business Development
Demographic-based impactFirm Overview
Mission Driven Finance is an impact investment firm dedicated to building a financial system that ensures good businesses have sufficient affordable access to capital. Built from the ground up with a single purpose—to make it easy to invest in your community—all of our funds and structured products are designed to close financial gaps that will close opportunity gaps. We work with local and national investors to help them create the impact they want, and work with businesses and community partners to help them get the capital they need. Mission Driven Finance was launched in 2016 in San Diego, CA and is a Certified B Corporation. Co-founded and co-owned by a woman of color, our team at Mission Driven Finance is intentionally diverse: 64% women, 64% Black, Indigenous or people of color, and 46% first- or second-generation New Americans. We are entirely focused on private market impact transactions and asset management.
Years of Operation: 5 – 9 years
% of Capital from Top 3 Investors: Less than 25%
Our mission is to mobilize massive amounts of capital that will increase equitable and inclusive access to education, health, and wealth - because we all do better when we all do better.
Too many good businesses and community initiatives are either ignored or preyed upon by the current financial system. Unfortunately, these are often the organizations that are delivering critical services, creating paths to quality jobs, and leading inclusive economic development. This is especially acute for those that: - Lack hard collateral or are earlier stage without the profitable history required by traditional lenders - Don’t have the quick scale-and-sell model demanded by VC - Are located in or led by people from overlooked and underestimated communities (BIPOC, New American, Women and Girls, LGBT, Veterans) We invest in small businesses, social enterprises, and nonprofits without the use of credit scores and personal guarantees. By using finance as a tool for change, we can give them a fighting chance. Our impact areas live at the intersection of: - Inclusive entrepreneurship - Immigrants, refugees, & New Americans - Shared ownership - Early care & education - Environmental justice - Housing & real estate
- Our entire focus is on accelerating economic opportunity in communities that have been left out of the current system, and rather than chasing unicorns we look for places where risk has been mispriced and there are significant capital gaps. - We prioritize community-driven efforts and provide the infrastructure to cost-effectively run smaller and bespoke community funds to create capital opportunities that otherwise wouldn’t exist. - We are able to underwrite in ways that other investors can’t, including avoiding things like credit scores, background checks, and hard collateral requirements, along with embedding technical assistance and being able to tackle smaller and more nuanced projects. - As much as possible, we avoid wealth-extractive models and strive to support local partners in a bottom-up strategy. - We embrace strength in diversity and understand that the history of exclusion and bias is part of what has prevented capital from flowing.
Investment Example
Co-founded in 2015 by Tri Le, MyPhuong Le, and Leah Villegas, Microtek specializes in developing microelectronic technologies that integrate engineering with chemistry and biology. This innovative company manages early research and development, prototyping, manufacturing, and product development. Their mission is to accelerate the integration of engineering and life sciences to improve human health. When we first met Microtek through a referral from the Asian Business Association, they were just hitting $2M in revenue with small net profits, and weren’t able to secure any affordable financing which had led them to take on high interest debt. However, they were ready to hire at least 5 additional employees and had significant contracts in process. We made a first loan from our Advance Strategy of $217k, and three months later an additional $200k. A year later, their revenue is over $5M and approaching 50 employees.
Leadership and Team
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Lauren Grattan – Co-Founder & Chief Community Officer More Info
Lauren’s background in nonprofit development made her eager to activate more capital for social change, leading her to co-found Mission Driven Finance. As Chief Community Officer, she leads the design of community-driven strategy, providing a frame for both internal culture & partner relationships. Prior to building Mission Driven Finance, she spent nearly 10 years fundraising for a wide variety of nonprofits—from large universities to small, volunteer-run initiatives. Lauren proudly serves on the steering committee of the Inclusive Capital Collective and on the board of Business for Good San Diego. |
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David Lynn – Co-Founder & CEO More Info
David Lynn has been working in the financial and philanthropic sectors for over 20 years. He found a way to blend those two worlds in 2016 as the founding CEO of Mission Driven Finance, a private impact investment firm dedicated to building a financial system that ensures good businesses have access to sufficient, affordable capital. Prior to focusing on impact investing, David specialized in private investment management, including reporting and risk management. |
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Louie Nguyen – CFA, Chief Investment Officer More Info
Louie is a seasoned global investor, with a particular focus on disruptive endeavors and mobilizing capital and human resources to solve community pain points. Prior to joining Mission Driven Finance, Louie ran Soledad Investment Management, where he made global investments including impact-oriented investments in Vietnam. Before launching Soledad, Louie was a senior portfolio manager for the Needelman Asset Management International Value product. |
Financial Performance
Impact Performance
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Percentage of Total Assets Under
Management that are Impact Investments: |
100%
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We actively seek out and develop quality impact investments that advance economic opportunity, particularly for populations that have historical barriers. Our target impact areas live at the intersection of: - Inclusive place-based strategies - Immigrants, refugees, and New Americans - Shared ownership - Early care and education - Environmental justice - Housing and real estate Enterprises that we invest in are committed to one or more of these areas: - Directly providing services such as education, healthcare, and workforce development - Increasing the availability of affordable and attainable housing and commercial space - Creating paths to quality jobs, income mobility, and economic participation - Improving the environment and other social determinants of health Our Community Finance Fellowship program, started in 2020 with five fellows, is designed to simultaneously develop leadership in and deploy capital to overlooked and underestimated communities.
Diversity is not an afterthought for us, but is core to our ability to both source deal flow and underwrite effectively. Our experienced team comes from a variety of backgrounds, often having worked in multiple communities and industries, and is able to partner sensitively with traditionally underserved communities. Internally, we encourage intense dialogue from differing perspectives to uncover opportunities and weaknesses in borrowers and in ourselves. When underwriting, we actively seek out and support companies that both represent and serve overlooked and underestimated communities, including in their ownership, core leadership team, employees, and customers. Additionally, we will help potential portfolio companies develop a stronger impact thesis and use capital as a motivator to shift practice.
Impact Tracking and Monitoring
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2245 San Diego Ave #121, San Diego, CA 92110, USA
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