Accion Venture Lab Adds $33M To Initial Capital Pool
Summary
Accion, a Washington, D.C.-based financial inclusion focused nonprofit organization, expanded its seed-stage investment initiative Accion Venture Lab with the addition of $33M to its initial capital pool. This included: – the launch of a new $23M fund, and – an additional, separate $10M investment from Accion. The new fund brings together a group of third-party impact and commercial investors that share Venture Lab’s commitment to innovative fintech startups that leverage technology to increase the reach, quality, and affordability of financial services for the underserved at scale. Launched in 2012 with $10m in capital and led by Managing Directors Tahira Dosani and Vikas Raj, Accion Venture Lab investes in companies in such sectors as insurtech, agricultural finance, digital lending, holistic MSME finance solutions, and personal financial management. The initiative also partners with philanthropic organizations whose support enables it to provide specialized and extensive strategic and operational support to its portfolio companies and to invest at the higher-risk pre-seed stage in pursuit of its mission to reach the underserved.