Gerhard Pries

Gerhard’s career focus, for the last 35 years, has been in impact investing and innovative finance in emerging markets. He is a senior expert in investment, development finance and private/public collaboration.

Most notably, Gerhard was the founder and CEO of Sarona Asset Management, a firm investing private equity and private debt in mid-market companies across Africa, Asia and Latin America. Sarona invests on behalf of private and public sector – families, foundations, pension funds and governments – with a commitment to strong financial returns, while creating deep and lasting impact wherever it invests.

As a visionary impact investing leader, Gerhard has also been heavily involved in guiding other organizations, including MEDA Investments Inc (Waterloo; 1994; Founder), MicroVest Capital Management (Washington; 2001; Co-founder), Grand Challenges Canada (Toronto; 2011; Board, Investment Committee) and ImpactAssets (San Francisco; 2012; Board).

Today, Gerhard serves as director and advisor on numerous private company and non-profit boards in developed and emerging markets alike.