MicroCapital recently reported on Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund’s support of businesses which need start-up capital greater than those provided by microfinance institutions (MFIs) but smaller than those provided by venture capitalists. Agora Partnerships carries this mission beyond India with its operations in Nicaragua. It seeks to fill this gap between $25,000 and $200,000, making it a vanguard in the micro venture field.
Agora Partnerships is a non-profit founded in 2004 by students at the Columbia Business School. It is registered in Virginia and manages the Agora Venture Fund, a for-profit venture capital fund. This pairing of the for-profit and non-profit models allows the organization to subsidize its costs within the US and offer a return to investors in order to spark the fledging field of micro-ventures.
Additional Resources
1) Agora Partnerships
2) MicroCapital Blog: “Filling a Gap: Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Ups the Ante”
