The Global Health Investment Fund (GHIF) was a “first-of-its-kind” investment product, created in 2012 through the surprising alliance of the Gates Foundation and JP Morgan Chase. Its supporters include a stellar cast of characters such as Grand Challenges Canada, AXA Investment Managers the development finance institution of both Germany and the World Bank, GSK, Merck, and Pfizer. Its mission is two-fold: generating attractive financial returns to its investors, and improving/saving lives for millions in low- and middle-income populations. This is accomplished by providing late-stage financing for innovative drugs, vaccines and diagnostics, and working with companies to introduce the products globally. The new AXA IM Global Health Fund is expanding the model with a larger fund and wider mandate that includes both communicable and non-communicable conditions.
In this episode, we’ll touch on:
- The kinds of global health innovations Curt financed through GHIF
- Curt’s guidance for innovators seeking growth capital
- Lessons learned for emerging fund managers
- Curt’s call to action for the global health community to ensure life-saving products are effectively delivered to communities as far as the last mile
This conversation was recorded live at the IFC Global Private Health Conference 2023 in Cape Town, February 2023. IFC is a development finance institution and the private sector arm of the World Bank Group.
Show Notes
- The Global Health Investment Fund is a social impact investment fund, which manages ~$100M and was initially structured and backed by the Gates Foundation and JP Morgan in 2012.
- EuBiologics is an example of one of the investments made by GHIF. The impact goal of this investment was to increase the global supply of affordable cholera vaccines. Because Cholera affects mostly low- and middle-income countries, it is highly underfunded compared to diseases of similar severity.
- Another example of GHIF’s investments is Access Bio. With the support of GHIF, Access Bio developed the only WHO-prequalified rapid diagnostic test (RDT) for malaria.
- How A Gates Foundation-Backed Fund Is Revolutionizing Global Health Impact Investing: Forbes interviews Curt LaBelle in 2019 about his experences running the Global Health Investment Fund.
- The AXA IM Global Health Fund is a fund targeting $500M launched in 2022. Like GHIF it pursues a double bottom line of both financial returns as well as millions of lives improved.
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