Social enterprise has taken off in Scottland to the point that it is holding its first trade fair . Not a fair underwritten by a foundation with the hope that the field will take hold, but a real trade fair, with 600 attendees and 50 exhibitors; a truly decent start.

According to the organizers, the […]

We are about to enter an exciting time…a ~60-day Beta Test for xigi.net starting in mid-June — xigi.net will invite a number of core players in the space (funders, intermedieries, entrepreneurs) to participate. Everyone will be kicking the tires and posting data and conversations — all at xigi.net’s new Beta Site. One idea is to […]

When something is about to catch on, and become big, one of the safest things to do is be the first cynic on the block. After all, most things that get overhyped tend to burst like bubbles. That’s the received wisdom that’s engrained in our current cultural furniture like salt marks on a wall […]

People are starting to hire our xigi.net team on web development projects, which is great. We have set some clear standards for the clients we will take on. They have to have some sort of mission focus related to accelerating the flow of capital to good. They have to be willing to contribute something […]

A few days past the anniversary of their first loan, my friend Matt Flannery’s Kiva microfinance portal has launched a new version of its site. They do an amazing job of getting online buzz and have had to scramble to find microfinance institutions to handle the volume of donations/investments they have been able to bring […]

We’re gathering a lot of momentum as we go forward. Both Jeff Hamoui of Origo and Taylor Jordan of the Rudolf Steiner Foundation have agreed to be part of our beta group populating the xigi deal tracker database when it goes live in a couple of weeks. Both indicated that they’d also be among those […]

The head of the Canadian International Development Agency link wants to explore how his agency can take on a wealth-creating role to support social entrepreneurs–a venture “not without high financial risks.” A growing and widening group of people, from foundations using program related investments, to some enlightened government officials, to individuals funnelling their money […]

VC Circle a blogy by Sahad P.V, an Indian finance and venture investment reporter and blogger says Kleiner Perkins venture capitalist superstar Vinod Khosla’s investment along with Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi) and $2.5 million in SKS Microfinance is “the biggest ever investment in an Indian microfinance institution”. From Symbiotics

Rana Dasgupta asks Why is the Third-World metropolis suddenly taking over western culture? via World Changing

CERES is so different from most recognized social enterprises– it’s all about changing the system through the capital markets.