Acumen Fund Inc

Organization Overview

Acumen Fund Inc is located in New York, NY. The organization was established in 2001. According to its NTEE Classification (Q12) the organization is classified as: Fund Raising & Fund Distribution, under the broad grouping of International, Foreign Affairs & National Security and related organizations. As of 12/2021, Acumen Fund Inc employed 87 individuals. This organization is an independent organization and not affiliated with a larger national or regional group of organizations. Acumen Fund Inc is a 501(c)(3) and as such, is described as a "Charitable or Religous organization or a private foundation" by the IRS.

For the year ending 12/2021, Acumen Fund Inc generated $30.5m in total revenue. This represents relatively stable growth, over the past 7 years the organization has increased revenue by an average of 3.7% each year. All expenses for the organization totaled $22.8m during the year ending 12/2021. While expenses have increased by 4.0% per year over the past 7 years. They've been increasing with an increasing level of total revenue. You can explore the organizations financials more deeply in the financial statements section below.

Since 2016, Acumen Fund Inc has awarded 74 individual grants totaling $9,430,984. If you would like to learn more about the grant giving history of this organization, scroll down to the grant profile section of this page.

Mission & Program ActivityExcerpts From the 990T Filing

TAX YEAR

2021

Describe the Organization's Mission:

Part 3 - Line 1

ACUMEN'S MISSION IS TO CHANGE THE WAY THE WORLD TACKLES POVERTY BY INVESTING IN COMPANIES, LEADERS AND IDEAS.ACUMEN'S VISION IS THAT ONE DAY EVERY HUMAN BEING WILL HAVE ACCESS TO THE CRITICAL GOODS AND SERVICES THEY NEED - INCLUDING AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE, CLEAN ENERGY, EDUCATION, WATER & SANITATION, HOUSING, ACCESS TO FINANCIAL SERVICES, AND AGRICULTURAL INPUTS - SO THEY HAVE THE CHOICE AND OPPORTUNITY TO TRANSFORM THEIR LIVES.

Describe the Organization's Program Activity:

INVESTING AND PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT:ACUMEN FUND, INC. ("ACUMEN") INVESTS PATIENT CAPITAL IN BUSINESS MODELS THAT DELIVER CRITICAL, AFFORDABLE GOODS AND SERVICES TO THE WORLD'S POOR, IMPROVING THE LIVES OF MILLIONS. SINCE 2001, ACUMEN HAS INVESTED IN BUSINESSES THAT PROVIDE ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE, ENERGY, EDUCATION, WATER & SANITATION, HOUSING, FINANCIAL SERVICES, AND AGRICULTURAL SERVICES TO LOW-INCOME CUSTOMERS. OUR INVESTMENTS ARE ADDRESSING THE PROBLEMS OF POVERTY IN EAST AND WEST AFRICA, SOUTH ASIA, LATIN AMERICA, AND THE UNITED STATES. ACUMEN INVESTED IN 16 NEW COMPANIES IN 2021, REACHING A CUMULATIVE $146 MILLION INVESTED IN 151 BUSINESSES SERVING THE POOR. [SEE CONTINUATION ON SCHEDULE O]ACUMEN ALSO EXITED FIVE COMPANIES RETURNING A TOTAL OF $1.6 MILLION.IN SEPTEMBER, THE ENERGY ACCESS RELIEF FUND ("EARF") WAS LAUNCHED. EARF IS A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND RELIEF FUND LAUNCHED WITH A FIRST CLOSE OF $68 MILLION AND A TARGET OF OVER $80 MILLION TO PROTECT ENERGY ACCESS FOR AT LEAST 20 MILLION PEOPLE IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA AND ASIA. THE ENERGY ACCESS RELIEF FUND (EARF) IS THE CULMINATION OF AN UNPRECEDENTED PARTNERSHIP CONVENED BY ACUMEN, INCLUDING CDC GROUP, U.S. INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCE CORPORATION (DFC), FMO, GREEN CLIMATE FUND (GCF), SHELL FOUNDATION, IKEA FOUNDATION, THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION, WORLD BANK, INTERNATIONAL FINANCE CORPORATION (IFC), SWEDISH INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION AGENCY (SIDA), SWISS AGENCY FOR DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATION (SDC), THE UK FOREIGN, COMMONWEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT OFFICE (FCDO), USAID, AND POWER AFRICA. THE EARF, MANAGED BY SOCIAL INVESTMENT MANAGERS AND ADVISORS (SIMA), PROVIDES RELIEF CAPITAL IN THE FORM OF SHORT-TERM LOANS TO AN ESTIMATED 90 ENERGY ACCESS COMPANIES IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA AND ASIA STILL STRUGGLING WITH DISRUPTIONS WROUGHT BY COVID-19.2021 WAS THE LAST YEAR OF ACUMEN'S 5-YEAR PIONEER ENERGY INVESTMENT INITIATIVE ("PEII"). FIVE YEARS AGO, PEII SET OUT TO EXPAND ENERGY ACCESS FOR THOSE LIVING IN LOW-INCOME REGIONS WITHOUT ELECTRIFICATION. TODAY, ACUMEN IS THE WORLD'S LARGEST INVESTOR IN OFF-GRID SOLAR.


FELLOWS AND LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS:IN 2021, ACUMEN ACADEMY MADE STRIDES IN DEVELOPING OUR CURRICULUM AND LEARNING PLATFORM: WE RAN NINE NEW FELLOWSHIP PROGRAMS WITH 236 DIVERSE FELLOWS FROM COLOMBIA, THE UNITED KINGDOM, SPAIN, WEST AFRICA, EAST AFRICA, INDIA, PAKISTAN, BANGLADESH AND MALAYSIA; WE LAUNCHED THE ROCKEFELLER FOUNDATION-ACUMEN FOOD SYSTEMS FELLOWSHIP WITH 1,056 APPLICATIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD; WE COMPLETED FOUR ACCELERATORS WITH 42 ORGANIZATIONS AND NINE SOCIAL SECTOR LEADERS. OUR GOAL IS TO CATALYZE INNOVATIVE BUSINESS MODELS THAT PROVIDE DIGNITY TO WORKERS WHILE FURTHERING ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY.


IMPACT AND COMMUNICATIONS:THE GOAL OF THE IMPACT AND COMMUNICATIONS TEAMS AT ACUMEN IS TO SUPPORT THE MISSION OF CHANGING THE WAY THE WORLD TACKLES POVERTY BY SHARING THE INSIGHTS FROM OUR WORK, PROMOTING AN ENTREPRENEURIAL, MARKETS-BASED APPROACH TO SOLVING POVERTY, AND SHIFTING PUBLIC PERCEPTION TO SEE THE POTENTIAL OF ENTREPRENEURIAL SOLUTIONS TO MEET THE NEEDS OF LOW-INCOME PEOPLE.IN Q1 2021, ACUMEN ADDED RESOURCES TO ITS IMPACT AND COMMUNICATIONS WORK TO ENHANCE ITS IMPACT MEASUREMENT AND INSIGHTS CONTENT GENERATION. [SEE CONTINUATION ON SCHEDULE O]RESOURCES INCLUDE A GLOBAL ENERGY SECTOR LEAD, A GLOBAL AGRICULTURE SECTOR LEAD, AND DEEPENING THE BENCH TO SUPPORT OUR IMPACT WORK.IN Q2 2021, ACUMEN EMBARKED ON A YEAR-LONG PROJECT TO STUDY AND ANALYZE THE SUCCESSES AND CHALLENGES OF OUR PATIENT CAPITAL WORK OVER THE PAST 20 YEARS. THE RESULTS OF THIS PROJECT WILL BE SHARED IN 2022.


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Outside Vendors & Contractors

Vendor Name (Service)Compensation
Dalberg Consulting Us Llc
Strategy Consultants
$181,000
Adp Totalsource Group Inc
Peo Service Organization
$144,282
Wall Street It Management
It Management Services
$194,558
60 Decibels Inc
Database Management
$387,377
Publisez Inc
Public Relations Agency
$225,046
View All Vendors

Financial Statements

Statement of Revenue
Federated campaigns$0
Membership dues$0
Fundraising events$0
Related organizations$0
Government grants $2,487,287
All other contributions, gifts, grants, and similar amounts not included above$26,365,209
Noncash contributions included in lines 1a–1f $1,666,805
Total Revenue from Contributions, Gifts, Grants & Similar$28,852,496
Total Program Service Revenue$3,028,714
Investment income $39,074
Tax Exempt Bond Proceeds $0
Royalties $0
Net Rental Income $0
Net Gain/Loss on Asset Sales -$1,793,837
Net Income from Fundraising Events $0
Net Income from Gaming Activities $0
Net Income from Sales of Inventory $0
Miscellaneous Revenue$0
Total Revenue $30,454,797

Grants Awarded

Over the last fiscal year, Acumen Fund Inc has awarded $725,397 in support to 10 organizations.

Grant RecipientAmount

BIOLITE INC

PURPOSE: EXPLORE FINANCING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MODERN COOKING SOLUTIONS AND BETTER UNDERSTAND THE POTENTIAL FOR SCALE

$122,000

AZIMUTH GROUP CORP

PURPOSE: IMPROVING SALES STRATEGY

$112,825

BURN MANUFACTURING CO

PURPOSE: SUPPORT BURNS PREPARATION TO LAUNCH COMMERCIAL PAYG EPCS AND A PILOT OF 100 PAYG EPCS

$98,650

60 DECIBELS INC

PURPOSE: SUBAWARD TO USE STATISTICALLY RIGOROUS METHODS TO EXPLORE THE CAUSAL LINKS BETWEEN THE THREE POULTRY COMPANIES (THE APMI COMPANIES) AND IMPROVEMENTS IN WELL-BEING FOR FARMER HOUSEHOLDS REARING THEIR CHICKENS

$94,922

REEMA HEALTH INC

PURPOSE: GRANT FOR ACUMEN AMERICA COVID-19 EMERGENCY RELIEF

$87,000

BOULDER CARE INC

PURPOSE: GRANT FOR ACUMEN AMERICA COVID-19 EMERGENCY RELIEF

$50,000
View Grant Profile

Grants Recieved

Over the last fiscal year, we have identified 53 grants that Acumen Fund Inc has recieved totaling $19,377,373.

Awarding OrganizationAmount
Fourdoves Foundation

New York, NY

PURPOSE: GENERAL

$5,000,000
Schwab Charitable Fund

San Francisco, CA

PURPOSE: INTERNATIONAL, FOREIGN AFFAIRS

$2,299,915
The Gaudio Family Foundation

New York, NY

PURPOSE: GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT

$1,000,000
Target Foundation

Minneapolis, MN

PURPOSE: SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS; 3-YEAR GRANT

$1,000,000
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Princeton, NJ

PURPOSE: 79314 SCALING ACUMEN AMERICA'S IMPACT THROUGH EXEC

$1,000,000
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Princeton, NJ

PURPOSE: 78403 SCALING ACUMEN AMERICA'S IMPACT BY ACHIEVING

$1,000,000
View Grant Recipient Profile

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