Associate, Sub-Saharan , Strategic Investment Fund

Position: Associate, Sub-Saharan Africa, Strategic Investment Fund
The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities.

As a workplace, we're committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team
In 2009, the foundation established its Strategic Investment Fund with the mandate to use equity, debt and guarantee investment tools to further the philanthropic goals of the organization. Making investments out of a $2.5 billion fund, the fund has become a leader in the "impact investing" industry, successfully completing more than 110 investments across a number of the foundation's strategic priority areas, which include programs in global health, global development, gender equality and US education.

Investments are made in support of the charitable impact theses of the strategy teams which employ technical experts from around the world. Representative past investments from the fund include:
- $11 million Series A preferred equity investment in bKash, Ltd., the largest mobile payments platform in Bangladesh serving more than 80 million unique customers across 500M monthly transactions.
- $55 million Series B preferred equity investment in BioNTech SE, a commercial biotechnology company developing immunotherapies for cancer and mRNA vaccines for infectious disease (IPO September 2019).
- +$300 million combined volume guarantees to Mylan Laboratories and Aurobindo Pharma to support the introduction and supply of new HIV drugs at affordable prices in low-income countries.
- €10 million Series C preferred equity investment in Aphea.

Bio, an agricultural biotechnology company developing crop biostimulant and biocontrol/protection products.
- $5 million Series B preferred equity investment in Pula, a leading insurtech company providing risk protection to over 4 million famers annually across Africa; and
- $300 million loan to Gavi and the Serum Institute of India to support scale-up of COVID-19 vaccines for low and middle-income countries.

Investments from the fund are structured as "program-related investments," which is a defined term in the US Internal Revenue Code that governs charitable investments made by private foundations.

Your Role

The Strategic Investment Fund is seeking an Associate, Sub-Saharan Africa, Strategic Investment Fund, to grow the investment portfolio by driving thesis formation, deal origination, investment execution and investment management activities with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa and an opportunity to work in other geographies.

This is a full-time role, based at the foundation's office in London
. Relocation will not be provided. The postholder reports to the Director, Program Related Investments.

What You'll Do

It is expected that the Associate will focus on the following responsibilities:

• Work closely with foundation program strategy teams to understand their impact objectives and partner with technical colleagues to form investment theses and source potential investments in Sub-Saharan Africa through active outreach and relationship-building within the entrepreneurial and investment communities.
• Join deal teams that include program technical experts, legal and investment colleagues to execute new investments, including: performing initial evaluation, participating in shaping conversations with company, determining investment structuring, leading the due diligence process and financial modeling, and negotiating definitive legal documentation.
• Present investments to the foundation's Investment Committee.
• Participate in all aspects of portfolio management, potentially including as an observer of the…