The Meng Impact Investment Fund will educate the next generation of impact leaders through hands-on experience investing in the ventures that are critical for a more just and sustainable world. Our mission is threefold: deliver competitive financial returns, achieve measurable positive impact, and create an enduring community of impact-oriented leaders
Launched in 2023, the Meng Impact Investment Fund is Yale SOM’s first student-run investment fund, offering hands-on learning opportunities for students interested in achieving societal impact through market-based financial tools. Created with support from Leon Meng ’97, the fund invests in innovative, early-stage for-profit ventures that strive to create a more sustainable and equitable world. Sectors are determined annually based on student interest, and this year include: climate, education & workforce development, financial inclusion, and healthcare.
Through the Meng Fund, students receive training through a tailored curriculum and cultivate practical skills by developing investment theses, sourcing early-stage for-profit ventures, conducting due diligence, and presenting investment opportunities to an investment committee. Fund operations are also student-led, granting a unique opportunity to craft the investment philosophy, direct a platform strategy, and set internal processes and standards.
The Meng Fund is committed to fostering impact in venture communities and to increasing student involvement in investing, entrepreneurship, and innovation across Yale and beyond. The fund receives institutional guidance from the International Center for Finance at the Yale School of Management and seeks to leverage expertise housed across Yale’s professional and graduate school network. By establishing a platform to gain investing experience on campus, the Meng Fund is a part of an ecosystem that works to make impact investing more accessible to all students.