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SRI360 | Sustainable & Responsible Investing, Impact Investing, ESG, Socially Responsible InvestingAuthor: Scott Arnell
The SRI360 Podcast is focused exclusively on Sustainable & Responsible Investing ('SRI'), Impact Investing, ESG and Socially Responsible Investing. To learn more, visit SRI360.com. Each episode presents an interview with a world-class investor who is an accomplished practitioner from different asset classes in wide-ranging, long-form discussions. In each episode, we cover everything from each investor's early personal journeyand what motivated and attracted them to commit their life energy to SRIto insights on how they developed and execute their investment strategies, what challenges they face today and much more. Each episode is a chance to go way below the surface with these impressive people and gain additional insights and useful lessons from world-class investors. Past guests include Sir Ronald Cohen, GSG Impact Ashley Schulten, BlackRock Jenn Pryce, Calvert Impact Capital Marisa Drew, Standard Charter Kieron Boyle, Impact Investing Institute Alina Donets, LO Assets Managers Jed Emerson, AlTi Tiedemann Global Matt Patsky, Trillium Investment Management Sharon Vosmek, Astia Ben Rick, Social and Sustainable Capital Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, Bamboo Capital Karla Mora, Alante Capital Ron Gonen, Closed Loop Partners Anish Majmudar, M&G Stewart Langdon, LeapFrog Investments Philipp Mueller, BlueOrchard Lucy Mortimer, Archipelago Ventures Mitch Reznick, Federated Hermes Mark Dowding, BlueBay Asset Management Stefano Bacci, Ambienta Ben Guest, Gresham House Energy Storage Fund Adam Swersky, Social Finance Asha Mehta, Global Delta Capital Marilyn Ceci, JP Morgan Charlotte Kaiser, BTG Pactual TIG Martin Berg, Climate Asset Management Liesel Pritzker Simmons, Blue Haven Initiative Chris Ailman, CalSTRS Maya Chorengel, TPG-The Rise Fund Rochus Mommartz, ResponsAbility Ingrid Kukuljan, Federated Hermes Nancy Pfund, DBL Partners Jonathan Maxwell, Sustainable Development Capital Michele Giddens, Bridges Fund Management, and many more. Language: en-us Genres: Business, Education, How To, Investing Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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How Blended Finance Powers 8% IRR in Emerging Market Utilities
Episode 116
Tuesday, 9 December, 2025
Blended finance is making hard deals in emerging markets investable. It drives real infrastructure development where capital markets are thin.And when the work involves emergency aid and building businesses, you need someone who’s seen how money really works in emerging markets.Few people know how to make those pieces fit together better than my guest today. Talmage Payne has spent three decades proving that mission-first investing can deliver both measurable social impact and competitive returns.Talmage is the founder of multiple social ventures across Southeast Asia and West Africa. He now serves as chairperson of TapEffect, a piped water utility delivering clean water to rural communities. There, households pay for the service, and the company delivers an 8-9% IRR.Today, we talk about how to blend grants, equity, and debt to scale essential services and how smart impact measurement keeps both investors and operators accountable.Join us to learn:What actually drives infrastructure investing success in low-income areasWhy good intentions aren't enough for viable social venturesHow to structure capital to crowd in commercial investorsThis is a conversation about what actually works backed by real numbers. Tune in.—Intro (00:00)Growing up in Nigeria during conflict (03:32)Moving to the U.S. and exploring big world problems (09:14)Cambodia becomes ground zero for real impact (11:37)Running aid programs to rebuild the country (15:52)Vision Fund turns charity into financial empowerment (17:34)Rethinking aid by making impact self-sustaining (20:49)Transition to Hagar International’s trauma recovery mission (22:44)Launching blended finance model to employ survivors (24:28)Struggles balancing nonprofit values and business demands (31:36)First Finance founded to enable housing access (35:28)Formalizing land ownership through micro-mortgages (38:14)Patient capital explained (48:35)TapEffect launched to solve rural water infrastructure gaps (49:21)AI helps detect leaks and manage water losses (52:43)Blended capital enables project scalability and affordability (59:34)“Two wallets” expose flaws in giving vs. investing (01:03:14)Rapid-fire questions (01:12:01)Contact info (01:19:47)— Discover More from SRI360°:Explore all episodes of the SRI360° Podcast Sign up for the free weekly email update —Additional Resources:Talmage Payne LinkedIn TapEffect website
