Matt Marsh

Why FUNDES Group Exists: Closing Gaps for Small Businesses and Impact Ventures in the underserved markets (...but high-potential markets) Last week in Washington D.C., sitting with catalytic capital leaders, social investors, and ecosystem builders, including Alicia DeLia (Buen Vivir Capital Institute), Elizabeth Garlow, Felipe Witchger, Charles Higgenbotham, Abigail Napsuciale Heredia (she/her), Devin Chesney one insight kept coming back: Inequality in underserved markets isn’t a technical challenge. It’s a systemic one. And systemic challenges require institutions built for systems, not only projects. For some time 😜, FUNDES Group has been exactly that: a platform dedicated to reducing inequality by strengthening the economic engine that has sustained Latin America for decades, micro and small businesses and impact-entrepreneurs. Because in our region: 🔹 They create most of the jobs. 🔹 Yet they remain underserved by finance, data, technology, and fair value chains. This is the core problem we exist to solve. Our solution: A dual engine that combines 1️⃣ FUNDES Impact Consulting, scaling what works: integrating small businesses into markets, value chains, tech ecosystems, and sustainable business models. 2️⃣ Fundamental Venture Studio, building what doesn’t yet exist: new enterprises designed to address structural gaps the market frequently ignores. We also discussed integrated capital, an idea FUNDES Group has been practicing for decades: grants → advisory → venture building → blended finance → impact measurement → systemic adoption. And we know it works, because small businesses don’t need a miracle. They need an ecosystem. 👉 I’m grateful to every partner helping us make that vision real.

47

4 Comments

One of the quiet mistakes we keep making is treating capital structure as a footnote rather than a design choice. In infrastructure the stack is the strategy. It determines who bears risk how fast assets get built and whether projects survive their first real stress test. When equity is asked to do the job of debt and policy is asked to do the job of structure we should not be surprised by stalled projects and rising costs. Getting the stack right is not about optimization at the margins. It is about aligning time horizons capital and physical reality from day one.

4

What does the "new era" of private equity look like? This week at PEI NEXUS, Bain & Company's Chairman of Global Private Equity Practice Hugh MacArthur recapped the firm's latest Global Private Equity Report. Hugh noted that firms will need to focus on what they do well in a “new era” for private equity. These sentiments echoed much of what Private Wealth Forum speakers, including Arax Investment Partners Founder and CEO Haig Ariyan, Laird Norton Wetherby CIO Ron Albahary, CFA, Ardian Managing Director, US Private Wealth Solutions Ava Mallin, and Citi Wealth Head of Private Equity and Real Estate Jeffrey Locke, shared on stage at PEI. This week's AGM Alts Weekly dives into what a "new era" in private equity might look like, connecting dots and data points from Bain & Company and McKinsey & Company's 2026 reports on the state of the private equity industry. Some key themes defined the takeaways from both reports: ➡️ Returns will not be a dime a dozen: Bain's punchline? "12 is the new 5." ➡️ Megadeals, big questions: 2025 witnessed an increase in global buyout deal value. However, just 13 deals of $10B or more contributed 69% of the growth in 2025, accounting for $274B of the global gain. ➡️ A K-shaped industry: Private equity appears to turning into a K-shaped industry, with “a subset of elite funds [being] on the upswing while everyone else muddles through.” ➡️ No fun in fundraising: McKinsey noted that core, closed-end fundraising has “become more competitive, selective, and time consuming.” ➡️ Continuation nation: There’s been a marked rise in continuation vehicle activity, but only represents less than 10% of exit value. ➡️ Mid-sized deals not so mid: Megadeal activity grabbed the headlines. But deal sizes $1-5B deals grew 29%. Growth in the $1-5B deal size segment could be encouraging for specialist buyout funds. There are some key questions for allocators to grapple with as they think about what private equity might look like in the future. 1️⃣ Do allocators believe public markets will continue to outperform private markets? 2️⃣ Will fundraising bounce back? 3️⃣ Can firms kick value creation into motion? 4️⃣ Are both GPs and LPs ready to handle how investors might look to exit evergreen vehicles? 5️⃣ For LPs, are they finding managers that have an edge? Read on for more👇 This week's Alt Goes Mainstream's AGM Alts Weekly, brought to you by DealsPlus, covers: 🗂️ AGM Index, an index that tracks the leading publicly traded alternative asset managers. 💻 Who is hiring: Senior-level positions from companies Blackstone, KKR, Apollo Global Management, Inc., Ares Management, EQT Group, Blue Owl Capital, Franklin Templeton, Fortress Investment Group, iCapital, Goldman Sachs, Ultimus Fund Solutions, Krilogy, MSCI Inc. Subscribe👇 to see the latest trends & navigate this rapidly changing landscape as alts go mainstream. https://lnkd.in/eRKN25jy

27

3 Comments