"This US$13.6 million capital closing and the recently announcedUS$25 million debt financing have both been closed after the start of thefinancial crisis," said Alvaro Rodriguez Arregui, IGNIA co-founder andManaging Partner. "We deeply appreciate the trust of our investors at thissensitive time, and it is a clear indication of how strong they deem the IGNIAbusiness model, the team we have assembled and our theory of change."

"Partnering with the MIF will bring tremendous value to IGNIA," saidMichael Chu, co-founder and Managing Director of IGNIA. "We will benefit fromthe substantial experience the MIF has built in pioneering equity investing inthe region."

"By supporting IGNIA, MIF is not only supporting the creation of a newventure fund dedicated to the base of the pyramid segment, but is also helpingcreate a new segment within the venture capital industry that will focus onfighting poverty, combining the lessons learned from microfinance with thefinancial tools of venture capital," said MIF team leader SusanaGarcia-Robles. "The demonstration effect of this fund could lead the way formany more similar initiatives in the region."

MIF has a mandate for innovation and aims to accelerate development of theprivate sector in Latin America. Over the past twelve years, MIF has approved56 seed and venture capital funds, representing over US$200 million incommitments in over a dozen countries.

"Alvaro Rodriguez Arregui and Michael Chu were instrumental in makingmicrofinance successful in Latin America and also have a unique combination ofprivate equity, executive management and BoP experience in the region," saidGarcia-Robles. "They can make the venture capital approach to tackling povertya success by investing in and scaling up businesses that serve the BoP."

IGNIA has already begun execution by completing two pioneeringinvestments, one in health care and the second in affordable housing. IGNIAmade a $3 million commitment to Primedic, which delivers quality health careto the urban BoP, and $2 million investment in Jardines de Grijalva, anaffordable housing development in Chiapas, Mexico (made through its realestate subsidiary).

IGNIA Fund I, L.P. is a social venture capital fund that invests in highgrowth businesses in Mexico and other regions of Latin America. By providingeffective responses to the enormously underserved needs of the low incomepopulation, both as consumers as well as active participants in productivevalue chains, IGNIA empowers entrepreneurship and generates social impactwhile creating attractive financial returns for its investors. Moreinformation is available at: www.ignia.com.mx

SOURCE IGNIA Fund I