POD: Impact Theatre Check—Balloon Ventures' contrarian sensibilities to SME financing in East Africa
Joshua Bicknell, co-founder of Balloon Ventures, discusses how the financial institution is challenging conventional investor logic by backing "boring businesses" to create sustainable employment in East Africa.
Episode Overview:
This episode features a deep conversation with Joshua Bicknell exploring how Balloon Ventures evolved from a non-profit connecting young people with informal entrepreneurs to becoming a financial institution that's deployed over $14 million in loans to SMEs across Kenya and Uganda, while openly sharing portfolio data to prove the viability of SME lending as an asset class.
Key topics:
- The false gospel of universal entrepreneurship
- Defining and creating "good jobs"
- Blended finance and return expectations
- The power of boring businesses
- Data transparency in impact investing
- Cash-based economies and digitalisation
Notable points:
- Their portfolio businesses represent 8% of Eastern Uganda's GDP—approximately 0.5% of the country's total GDP
- The institution provides loans of $10,000-$200,000 bundled with 6 months of business support
- They're helping validate that SME lending can be viable with the right approach to data and risk
- Their model challenges the "have your cake and eat it" narrative in impact investing
- They're open-sourcing portfolio data to encourage other institutions to enter the space
Listen in for practical insights into how traditional brick-and-mortar businesses can drive meaningful economic development and job creation in East Africa's emerging markets.