Where Capital Sits Matters: Why Proximate Investing Delivers Better Impact
About the session
Who manages capital, and where they are based, fundamentally shapes what gets funded, how decisions are made, and who ultimately benefits. Yet much of the impact investing ecosystem remains designed far from the communities it aims to serve.
This interactive session brings together female leaders shaping capital from within Latin America, Africa, and Asia, alongside a global enabling organization, to explore why proximate capital and locally rooted ecosystem builders are essential to achieving better outcomes.
Moderated by Sumi Pasupathy, the conversation will feature:
Anna Ekeledo (AfriLabs), sharing insights from supporting innovation ecosystems across Africa
Connie Connolly (Global Alliance of Impact Lawyers – GAIL), reflecting on how legal frameworks can enable more locally grounded capital
Inez Stephanie (Equatora Capital), bringing perspective from Indonesia on investing in locally rooted ventures
Michelle Arevalo-Carpenter (IMPAQTO Capital), drawing on her experience building a regionally rooted investment platform in the Andean region
Together, they will explore how proximity strengthens trust, improves capital allocation, and shifts power toward institutions embedded in the Global South.
Why this session at The Sidebar
This conversation feels particularly important for The Sidebar because it centers leaders who are not just participating in the system, but actively building and shaping capital from within the regions where impact is meant to happen.
It creates space to surface lived experience across Latin America, Africa, and Asia, while connecting that practice to the legal, financial, and structural shifts needed to support a more locally rooted investment ecosystem.
What to expect
This will be an interactive, dialogue-driven session that moves beyond high-level narratives to challenge core assumptions:
Who gets to design investment strategies
Who is trusted to allocate capital
What institutions are recognized as central to the field
Participants will engage directly with speakers and each other, reflecting on how power, proximity, and decision-making shape outcomes in their own work.
Who should join
Impact investors and fund managers
Philanthropies and DFIs
Ecosystem builders and intermediaries
Practitioners working in or with Global South markets
What you’ll leave with
A clearer understanding of why proximity matters in capital allocation
Practical insights from leaders building locally rooted investment ecosystems
New perspectives on shifting power and decision-making in impact investing
Connections with others committed to advancing more equitable capital systems
This session aims to spark not only reflection, but a stronger commitment to backing proximate actors as leaders in the field—not just participants within it.