It might seem off mission for investors who say they want to drive prosperity in developing countries to support entrepreneurs based in the city with the most concentrated venture capital in the world.
Most of the more than $100 million the venture arm of the World Bank’s International Finance Corp. will invest this fiscal year will go to the emerging markets, including tech hubs such as Nairobi, Kenya — dubbed the “Silicon Savannah”. But recently the IFC has also invested in Silicon Valley companies such as the cloud-based software company Ayla, the satellite company Planet Labs and the online education company Coursera.
The IFC’s $20 million investment in Planet Labs last year prompted some critics to point out the company was not lacking for funding opportunities from traditional venture capitalists such as Data Collective, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Capricorn Investment Group, all of whom were part of the $118 million round the IFC joined.