Social Investor Impact Engine Closes Its Second Venture Fund

(Bloomberg) -- Impact Engine, a women-led investment firm that supports social change, closed its second venture fund at $25 million.

The Ventures II fund is backing early-stage software companies that target economic empowerment, education, environmental sustainability and health, Chicago-based Impact Engine said Friday. Its first venture fund gathered $10 million.

Socially conscious investing is increasing its profile. The world’s largest fund managers saw assets devoted to environmental, social and governance issues surge 23.3% last year to $1.46 trillion, according to Thinking Ahead Institute and Pensions & Investments.

Ventures II has invested in nine companies, including CancerIQ, which identifies at-risk patients who qualify for genetic testing, and Glimpse K12, which helps schools improve the efficiency of the spending.

“We’re seeing a new generation of entrepreneurs that are addressing social challenges through business models that can generate better outcomes as well as attractive financial returns,” Tasha Seitz, a partner at Impact Engine, said in an interview.

The firm, led by Chief Executive Officer Jessica Droste Yagan, has $52 million in assets under management, including a private equity fund.

To contact the reporter on this story: Janet Lorin in New York at jlorin@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sam Mamudi at smamudi@bloomberg.net, Vincent Bielski, Melissa Karsh

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