Building 21st Century Nonprofit Capital Markets

February 12, 2021

As the nation reels from multiple crises — the pandemic, the economy, and structural racism — the profound disparities in how these crises have affected low-income and communities of color have ignited multiple cries for reform of the philanthropic marketplace. Over 800 funders and donors have signed the Call for Action pledge endorsing a range of principles that have the potential to transform how philanthropy funds and invests in nonprofits and social enterprises. For the past year, Andrea Levere has served as an Executive Fellow through the International Center for Finance of the Yale SOM to research and propose how to scale the delivery of “enterprise capital” or philanthropic equity to build financial strength and resilience of the social sector while also addressing the need for investment in organizations led by or serving communities of the color. This work is captured in the Blueprint for Enterprise Capital. The panel combined the perspectives of nonprofit CEOs, a foundation executive, and a Yale finance professor to frame out a vision for the future of nonprofit capital markets. In addition, five Yale SOM graduates and students who worked with Andrea on the Blueprint participated in the discussion.