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Venture capital and impact investing in emerging markets are growing rapidly as they seek to fund innovative products and services globally. However, many developing markets are thinly capitalized and have unique constraints, which make venture and impact investing in emerging markets a particularly tricky endeavor. Nonetheless, there are real opportunities to find innovators in all corners of emerging markets, and generate srong returns in the process. This course focuses on the intersection of venture capital and impact investing, and its specific application in the service of consciously creating impact. Given many of the early success stories, this class will focus primarily on financial inclusion, as it helps to demonstrate the progression of one impact investment sector that has had both early stage commercial VC support and multiple exits. The course explores what is happening today with the fintech revolution, as the financial services sector begins to digitize and is increasingly delivered via mobile phones. This focus on financial inclusion will highlight the power of investing to drive value creation, economic growth, and social returns. Students will have the opportunity to explore how investors develop focus areas and theses, source and evaluate investments, manage and grow a portfolio, drive towards exits, and manage challenges that arise through this process. Prerequisites include: either Corporate Finance (SA.380.760) or Leeds Private Equity in Emerging Markets OR enrollment in the Corporate Valuation: A Primer to Wall Street Valuation Methodologies course offered by SAIS Career Services. <a href="http://bit.ly/1bebp5s" target="_blank">Click here to see evaluations, syllabi, and faculty bios</a>