Kushal Chakrabarti, Co-Founder and CEO of Vittana, delivers a keynote speech at SOCAP10

1. Building a world where anyone can go to college
Kushal Chakrabarti
Co-Founder and CEO, Vittana
http://twitter.com/kushalc
kushalc@vittana.org
Vittana/Africa: Bringing “10 Most Innovative voted by 1.7M readers as “#1 “next new thing in
Student Loans to Africa Companies in Finance” game-changer in philanthropy” charity”

2. Young organization with bit of success and a big vision
Vittana/Africa: Bringing “10 Most Innovative voted by 1.7M readers
Student Loans to Africa Companies in Finance” as “#1 game-changer
in philanthropy”
“a hotbed of “Superbien.” “next new thing in
innovation” charity”

3. Part 1: Building the Vittana ground model of education microcredit
$20
mom as co-signer
+
$15
vocational school
+
specific loan structure $10
+ =
... $5
+
collaborative product $0
development (3-9 months)
+
282% income change
ground teams 97% repayment rate

4. Part 2: Anyone with $25 can help a student finish school on vittana.org
$400,000
Student Loan Portfolio at Vittana MFIs
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
May 2009 Aug 2009 Nov 2009 Feb 2010 May 2010 Aug 2010

5. I want to take you on a journey...

6. Three years ago...

7. NYT: Father spending 30% of income on son’s education

8. Took as challenge to learn as much about microcredit, education

9. SSIR: “Reimagining Microfinance,” June 2008

10. #1 cause of drop-outs in many emerging countries: Financial cost
70+% of drop-outs
due to financial cost

11. #1 increase in spending by 1st-time MF borrowers: Education
100%
Increase in Spending by 1st-Time Borrowers
75%
50%
25%
0%
Food Fuel Electricity Clothing Education Health

12. Why
Not?

13. $700 isn’t that much money in the grand scheme of things
$700 ~ $27

14. Catch-22: No track record => no investment => no track record
Track
Record
Knowledge Investment

15. “Last mile of education”: 282% average income change
$20
$15
$10
$5
$0
282% average
income change

18. Mission: Jumpstart global ecosystem of education finance

19. 1 person can’t invest $50M, but 1M people can invest $50.

20. Vittana loan model getting better and better
$20
mom as co-signer
+
$15
vocational school
+
specific loan structure $10
+ =
... $5
+
collaborative product $0
development
+
282% income change
ground teams 97% repayment rate

21. 3 years ago: Just open up a marketplace
$20
$15
$10
a Vittana marketplace for
education funding ≠
$5
$0
282% income change
97% repayment rate

22. 1 year ago: try to “teach” MFIs
$20
mom as co-signer
+
$15
vocational school
+
specific loan structure $10
+ ≠
... $5
+
shallow product support $0
282% income change
97% repayment rate

23. Today: Work directly with MFIs for 3-9 months + first ground teams
$20
mom as co-signer
+
$15
vocational school
+
specific loan structure $10
+ =
... $5
+
collaborative product $0
development (3-9 months)
+
282% income change
ground teams 97% repayment rate

24. Holy grail: repayment probability of female, 20-25, Peru, nurse?
segment expected repayment
female
Lima, Peru
nursing 98.3%
20-25 age bracket
<2 kids

25. Demonstration effect: Jumpstart global ecosystem of education finance
1. What if you could rigorously demonstrate
MFI- and investor-side financial viability?
2. What if you could causatively, statistically
significantly demonstrate impact?
3. What happens then?

26. How do you create meaning with money in education?
Risk-tolerant, patient
capital
+ Meaning
A new idea = +
+ Possibility
Heavy-duty ground
program development

27. First non-Vittana funder of education micro-loans — Kiva
$400,000
Student Loan Portfolio at Vittana MFIs
$300,000
$200,000
$100,000
May 2009 Aug 2009 Nov 2009 Feb 2010 May 2010 Aug 2010
Total Vittana

29. Nardith needed $700 to attend nursing school
mom in Norway
MBA student in
Boston
banker in NYC
Stanford alum in
Las Vegas
entrepreneur in
Seattle
...
and 14 others
Nardith Torres Needed
Nurse
Peru
$700
http://www.vittana.org/students/15

30. Not just money, but completely changes reality of choice