Author: Eric Brand

“We’ve got companies that are literally changing the world or have the potential to do so. There’s no better place to get involved with that than our Summit, where people from all over the global ecosystem come to learn, network, invest, and party.” – Jon Medved, CEO of OurCrowd We are excited to announce the theme of the 2019 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit, taking place in Jerusalem, on March 7: “Startups: Making a Global Impact,” reflecting the incredible power of breakthrough technologies to make a real and lasting difference in the world. From MedTech companies using scanning technology that reverses spinal injuries to IoT sensors deployed in AgTech to conserve water and increase crop yields, the potential for startups to improve the lives of individuals and societies alike is beginning to be realized in a big way. We’ll be featuring this throughout the upcoming Summit – onstage, in working sessions, and in a multitude of tech demos. Some highlights: Startups as Impact: Hear how investing in private markets may avoid the trade-off of return for environmental and societal goals. Then...

A key buzzword in the financial world for a while now has been impact, as in impact investing, the idea that you can make investments in companies, organizations, and funds with the intention to generate a positive, measurable social or environmental effect alongside financial return. The biggest issue in impact investing has been the assumption that those financial returns will be lower. No longer. Many startup companies are having a real, lasting, positive effect on the world, from MedTech companies using scanning technology that reverses spinal injuries to IoT sensors deployed in AgTech to conserve water and increase crop yields. The potential is only beginning to be realized. With the private markets increasingly a place that sophisticated investors look to for outsize returns (albeit with outsize risk), investors may be able to satisfy their desire for impact without giving up return.  That’s a pretty exciting prospect. Let’s look at it in detail. A Model Ripe for Disruption Excitement about impact investing has swept the investor world. According to the Global Impact Investing Network, assets under management defined as impact...