NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, January 25, 2018

ImpactUs launched last spring with a splash. Hatched out of the CDFI world and funded by heavyweights including the Ford and MacArthur foundations, the impact investment marketplace promised to bring new ease to connecting investors with vetted funds as well as direct investments in social enterprises. Its goal: $1 billion in transactions over five years.

But less than a year later, ImpactUs has shut down.

“The ImpactUs Marketplace was formed with the goal of simplifying the impact investing process; providing impact investors, advisors, and institutions with solutions to accelerate the flow of capital to funds, companies, and projects that deliver community, societal, and environmental benefits. Unfortunately, we have had to make the difficult decision to cease operations,” reads a message on its web site.

ImpactUs representatives were unable to comment. But people familiar with the situation say ImpactUs quietly closed late last year, and is working on a sale or transfer of assets to a third party.

The development surprised many in the impact world, especially given the startup’s pedigree and the growing demand for the kind of socially beneficial investments it offered.

Photo courtesy of Images Money.