Omidyar spins out fintech arm as Flourish Ventures

Flourish’s initial team will comprise the 18 professionals currently working at Omidyar’s Financial Inclusion Initiative. The firm will take over the parent's $200 million worldwide portfolio, including its fintech investments in India such as non-banking finance companies Varthana and Intellegrow Finance, along with small business lender NeoGrowth. It will have offices in Silicon Valley, Washington DC, London, and Mumbai.

Flourish's three managing partners – Emmalyn Shaw, Tilman Ehrbeck, and Arjuna Costa – were previously partners at Omidyar. Investments will follow an evergreen structure, with Pierre Omidyar committing $300 million to be deployed over the next five years.

Omidyar’s financial inclusion portfolio includes more than 40 fintech companies worldwide, with a focus on entrepreneurs using technology to help low and middle-income households and small business improve their financial standing. It has a presence in several Asian countries but is most active in India.

"We believe that capital, when deployed to create individual opportunity and change sectors, can shape a more inclusive economy," said Ehrbeck in a statement. "We have made remarkable progress in bringing people into the formal financial system, but that has not necessarily translated into better economic outcomes. That is the industry's next challenge."

Asia has emerged as a leading market for fintech in recent years, with China serving as a testbed for a number of innovative business models aimed at providing consumers and businesses with a greater degree of control over their personal finances. India and Southeast Asia are also seen as attractive markets due to the rising penetration of mobile internet services and the emergence of a tech-savvy population of young middle-class consumers.

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