Impact Europe is studying how different types of actors and capital can align to drive impact that goes beyond projects, toward long-term, systems change solutions. This report captures the perspectives of practitioners who are experimenting […]
Collaboration in Action: How to Collectively Work Towards Systems Change Read More »
This new guide, authored by C3’s Harvey Koh, lays out a framework for investors to take a more strategic approach to catalytic capital deployment, by deeply understanding the capital gaps they seek to address. It
Addressing Capital Gaps: A Guide to Strategic Deployment of Catalytic Capital Read More »
Convergence assesses the historical engagement of philanthropic investors and DFIs in blended finance and proposes a series of pathways for more systematic collaboration between these groups to sustain the allocation of catalytic resources to developing
The TransCap Initiative convened experts from the fields of investment management, philanthropy, academia, and systems innovation to collectively explore and develop the concept of capital orchestration as a critical function in enabling systems transformation.
Financial Backbones: Capital Orchestration for Systems Transformation Read More »
This paper from the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) identifies persistent “white spaces” in the development finance ecosystem and argues that bridging them requires a distinct institutional approach—one that embraces patient, risk-tolerant, small-ticket, and
This report from Convergence investigates blended finance trends across the overall market in 2024, including investor and deal trends. It found that blended finance deal flow was higher in 2024 than the market average for
Convergence: State of Blended Finance Read More »
British International Investment (BII) and Boston Consulting Group (BCG) have teamed up to provide practical tools to strengthen the design, assessment, and mobilization of blended finance funds. The tools are based on BII’s experience of
Scaling Blended Finance: Practical tools for blended finance fund design Read More »
The Toniic 100 Project collects portfolio data from some of the most experienced active private wealth impact investors in the world. In its 2025 report, Toniic notes that 64% of portfolios in the study contain
Cruising Altitude: Insights from the Frontier of Impact Investing Read More »
The last in C3’s series of 2024 webinars features research projects that strengthen the evidence base for catalytic capital, answering questions such as when and how catalytic capital is needed, what role it plays, and
Maximizing Catalytic Capital’s Leveraging Power (Webinar #3) Read More »
In the second installment of our 2024 webinar series, C3 teams up with African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA) to bring together leaders from Impact Investing Ghana, Open Capital, I&P, Aceli Africa and the Initiative for
Webinar Series: Maximizing the Leveraging Power of Catalytic Capital in Africa Read More »
This report was a collaboration of four regional impact investor networks: AVPA, AVPN, Impact Europe and Latimpacto. It maps the practice of catalytic capital across various thematic areas, and surfaces trends, case examples and lessons
Accelerating Impact: Catalytic Capital in Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Africa and Europe Read More »
A report from the Impact Finance Research Consortium (IFRC) sheds new light on the features and applications of catalytic capital. A collaboration of the Wharton ESG Initiative, the Harvard Business School Social Impact Collaboratory, and
Catalytic Capital in Impact Investing: Forms, Features and Functions Read More »
In a new white paper, EVPA, one of C3’s network partners, takes a close look at how impact investors can be more catalytic in their provision of capital, in pursuit of impact for people and
Catalysing Impact: Catalytic Capital in Europe Read More »
AVPN offers an overview of the work of Artha Impact, an advisory firm that facilitates deployments of patient capital, with a goal of investing in early-growth stage high-impact businesses in India that focus on underserved
Catalytic Capital at Work: Artha Impact Read More »
Catalytic capital plays a vital “sustaining” role for funds, initiatives, and enterprises that take on the world’s most difficult challenges. This is the third and final guidance note to emerge from the C3 Learning Lab
Advancing Practice in Catalytic Capital Guidance Note 3—The Sustaining Role Read More »
The Merry Year Social Company (MYSC) is a South Korea-based impact investor focused on early-stage social venture companies that do not have access to mainstream investors. In a 2023 case study, AVPN offers an overview
Catalytic Capital at Work: Merry Year Social Company Read More »
Drawn from C3 Learning Labs on “scaling,” this guidance note considers how catalytic capital helps funds, managers, and strategies grow beyond their initial success to eventually become commercially investable.
Advancing Practice in Catalytic Capital Guidance Note 2—The Scaling Role Read More »
This is the first in a series of guidance notes emerging from C3 Learning Labs with seasoned catalytic capital investors. It identifies some of the challenges investors may face when deploying catalytic capital in a
Advancing Practice in Catalytic Capital Guidance Note 1—The Seeding Role Read More »
Still wondering about the how, when, and why of catalytic capital? You’re not alone. C3 addresses some of the key questions about the sector and why it is so critical to achieving social and environmental
Frequently Asked Questions about Catalytic Capital Read More »
In a new research brief, Convergence considers how DFIs have made catalytic capital investments to create new commercial markets, leverage additional investors, and achieve other goals, with a particular focus on blended finance transactions. The
How DFIs Deploy Catalytic Capital Read More »
Omidyar Network, a C3 strategic partner, reports on the strategies and perspectives of leading impact investors who have moved beyond polarized debates about “trade-offs” to invest across the returns continuum, including deploying catalytic capital.
Beyond Trade-Offs: Investor perspectives from across the continuum of impact investing Read More »
