LeapFrog Investments taps Barton as management board chair

LeapFrog Investments has named Dominic Barton as chairman of its management board. The appointment is effective April 1, 2022. Barton was the former global managing partner of McKinsey & Company and most recently Canada’s Ambassador to China.

PRESS RELEASE

LeapFrog Investments, the Profit with Purpose investment firm, today announced the appointment of Dominic Barton as non-executive Chairman of its Management Board, effective 1 April. Dominic was formerly Global Managing Partner of McKinsey & Company and was most recently Canada’s Ambassador to China. He accepts this appointment at an inflection point for the impact investing industry as firms attract global leaders and top-tier institutional capital.

LeapFrog is the world’s largest dedicated equity impact investor. The firm has raised $2 billion to invest in purpose-driven businesses and its companies now reach 272 million people in 35 countries.

Dominic said: ”I am very excited to join LeapFrog and help scale this ground-breaking platform. Having previously sat on LeapFrog’s Global Leadership Council, I believe in the mission and look forward to supporting Founder Dr. Andy Kuper and the team as they take LeapFrog to the next level.

“There are nearly four billion emerging consumers, and by 2025 their spending power will surpass US $30 trillion. At the same time, we are seeing a groundswell of institutional investors seeking to do well by doing good. These factors, combined with LeapFrog’s phenomenal expertise investing in companies built on the latest technologies including healthtech, fintech, insurtech and genomic medicine, position LeapFrog for exponential impact.”

Dominic will support LeapFrog as it makes ever more investments in private companies in Asia and Africa, accelerates its fundraising, diversifies its investor base, and enhances its magnet for global impact investing talent. LeapFrog has announced it aims to reach 1 billion emerging consumers with essential services by 2030, while aiming to deliver top-tier returns to investors.

“Dominic is widely recognised as one of the most respected and connected executives in the world, and is the ideal person to mentor and support LeapFrog’s leadership during this expansion phase,” said LeapFrog CEO Dr Andy Kuper. “His experience in emerging markets over many decades, from his birth in Uganda to his leadership of McKinsey across Asia and globally, has uniquely prepared him to govern and guide our next leaps. His expertise in responsible investing and standard-setting will help ensure we continue to innovate and lead the industry with authenticity. No one builds trust and partnerships, from the grassroots to the treetops, like Dom – and that is the foundation of sustainable success and distinctive impact.”

Dominic’s appointment caps a period of rapid capacity building at LeapFrog, following a $500 million strategic partnership with Temasek announced in 2021, the largest ever single commitment to a dedicated impact investor. Since then, the firm has bolstered its leadership team with senior appointments from across the private equity and impact industries, including alumni of CVC Capital, Cinven, the IFC-World Bank and Bain & Company.

Dominic’s leadership in developing responsible investing strategies and impact metrics stretches back decades. He was one of several co-founders of the non-profit organisation Focusing Capital on the Long Term (FCLTGlobal), which has a mission to focus capital on the long term to support a sustainable economy. He was Chairman of the IIRC, the benchmark global accounting standard for purpose-driven investments.

He also has a long history in emerging markets. Dominic was Asia Chairman for McKinsey between 2004 and 2009. After, while leading McKinsey as Global Managing Partner, he helped to launch Generation, a training and work placement program active across developing markets including India and Kenya, which has now graduated over 50,000 young people.

Dominic has held senior leadership positions at major business organisations and philanthropies serving Asian and African markets, including as a Member of Singapore Economic Development Board’s International Advisory Council, Seoul International Business Advisory Council, UN’s HeForShe Initiative, and as a board member of the Malala Fund and Mastercard Foundation.

LeapFrog was the first equity investor dedicated to social impact to reach $1 billion in investor commitments and last year became the first to raise $2 billion. LeapFrog was also the first impact investor worldwide to announce an independent impact audit against the Operating Principles for Impact Management (OPIM), the industry standards overseen by the International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank. The Global Impact Investing Network’s (GIIN) now estimates the global impact investing market is valued at $715 billion.