JPMorgan, a US-based global financial services firm with assets of USD 1.5 trillion and operations in more than 50 countries, has announced the launch of a Social Sector Finance (SSF) unit within its Investment Bank. The unit will leverage JPMorgan’s existing products and expertise to bring financial services to microfinance and social enterprises. The unit’s service offering will include capital markets, structured products, and principal investments and will pursue a double bottom line strategy of both social benefits and financial returns.
The establishment of JPMorgan’s SSF unit is part of the firm’s overall strategy to increase its focus on microfinance. Head of Global Research Nick O’Donohoe is leading JPMorgan’s efforts to further the firm’s Social Responsibility agenda. The new SSF unit will be run by Christina Leijonhufvud, who will report directly to Mr. O’Donohoe. According to her LinkedIn profile, Ms. Leijonhufvud received a master’s degree in economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science and was a former Country Director at the World Bank serving Central Asian Operations. In addition to her service a JPMorgan, Ms. Leijonhufvud also serves as a consultant for Ashoka, a non-profit organization that promotes social entrepreneurship worldwide through financial services for social enterprises.
JPMorgan’s new SSF unit is not the first of its kind. In September 2007, MicroCapital.org reported on the formation of a Microfinance Institution Group at Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley’s unit came as a natural progression stemming from its recent work in the microfinance industry. In March 2006, Morgan Stanley and BlueOrchard Finance, a microfinance fund investment company issued a USD 106 million bond backed by loans to MFIs. In May 2007, Morgan Stanley and BlueOrchard issued another USD 108 million equivalent in bonds to finance 13 MFIs globally.
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David Satterthwaite
(Visit David's Website)
David brings 10 years of experience in
microfinance management, social
entrepreneurship, non-profit
management/fund-raising and microfinance
investment research.
David is the Chairman and President of
Prisma Microfinance, Inc., a retail
“microbank” operating in Central America.
He is also Chief Editor of
MicroCapital.org, a news and information
service for the microfinance community and
its investors. Each month,
MicroCapital.org publishes the
MicroCapital Monitor, the leading industry
newspaper.
David writes and speaks frequently on
microfinance. He has been a quest speaker
at many events, including: Microcredit
Summit 5+: Panel on Private Investment,
Milken Institute Global Conference, United
Nations Year of Microcredit Symposium for
Wall Street, Chicago Conference on
Microfinance, Harvard Social Enterprise
Conference, Dartmouth’s Business
Sustainability Conference, Wharton’s
Conference on Social Entrepreneurship,
Stanford’s Social Enterprise Club,
Columbia’s Social Enterprise Program and
the Net Impact Annual Conference. Through
his work with Prisma and MicroCapital, he
has been featured or quoted in The Wall
Street Journal, the Boston Globe, “All
Things Considered,” Reuters and
SocialFunds.com. David has been
recognized with the Compaq Computer
Corporation Leadership Award, the City
Year Inspiring Leader Award and the
National Social Venture Business Plan
Competition award for Best Social Impact
Analysis.
David has supported many non-profit and
for-profit social enterprises in different
capacities, including Access Technology
Learning Center, Agora Partnerships,
Bridges to Business, City Year, Fonkoze,
Kiva and National Social Venture
Competition.
David holds a B.A. with Honors in
Political Science from Haverford College.
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