As Director of Impact Investing at IMPACTO, Mariella helps impact-driven businesses and investors to raise capital and increase awareness for impact investments as a viable opportunity. Mariella brings 12 years of experience providing financial services in the United States as well as developing countries in Asia, Africa and, Latin America. Since 2014, Mariella focuses in working with organizations that support and invest in social entrepreneurs, preparing companies for investment, managing portfolios of social enterprises, conducting due diligence, structuring impact investments, and implementing innovative funding programs.
Mariella is currently the project manager of a study assessing the impact investing ecosystem in Peru alongside Deetken Impact, SVX, and SVX Mexico. The purpose of this project is to identify key challenges and opportunities in order to establish the Peruvian Impact Investing National Advisory Board.
Most recently, Mariella was the Head of Investor Relations and Financial Innovation at Agora Partnerships, providing capital advisory services to social enterprises in Latin America, supporting impact investors to get connected with pipeline opportunities from the Agora Alumni Community, and designing new funding programs. She advised early and growth-stage social enterprises across different sectors—sustainable agriculture, water, sanitation, and renewable energy—in Latin America through Agora’s Accelerator programs. Mariella has supported entrepreneurs in refining their value proposition and preparing them for a smooth due diligence process with potential impact investors.
Prior to joining Agora, Mariella worked as Portfolio Manager at NESsT Peru, an organization investing in social entrepreneurs and providing them with tailored financing and one-on-one business development support, across different sectors. Mariella was also the Project Manager of the Variable Payment Obligation (VPO) program, a financial inclusion program, funded by USAID’s Partnering to Accelerate Entrepreneurship (PACE) Initiative and the Argidius Foundation. The VPO program was designed for asset-light small and growing businesses in Latin America and the Caribbean and promotes a loan product and business development services.
Mariella spearheaded Villgro’s international scaling efforts first in Kenya and then Vietnam. Villgro is a business incubator providing mentoring and funding to early-stage social enterprises in India. Mariella helped kick-start operations in Kenya and oversaw the launch of Villgro Kenya, the first replicated Villgro. As part of the Villgro Kenya team, Mariella advised early-stage East African-based healthcare companies on their product development and go-to-market strategies and built new strategic partnerships with potential donors and other ecosystem organizations. Prior to that, she was a management consultant with Deloitte, Citigroup, and PwC in Washington D.C., and New York City.
Mariella holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Maryland College Park and a Graduate Certificate in Social Enterprise Management & Impact Investing from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies.