Omidyar Network is a self-styled "

philanthropic Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

investment firm An investment company is a financial institution principally engaged in holding, managing and investing securities. These companies in the United States are regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and must be registered under th ...

," composed of a foundation and an impact investment firm. Established in 2004 by

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

founder

Pierre Omidyar Pierre Morad Omidyar (born Parviz Morad Omidyar, June 21, 1967) is a French-born Iranian-American billionaire and the grandson of General Mahmud Mir-Djalali. A technology entrepreneur, software engineer, and philanthropist, he is the foun ...

and his wife Pam, Omidyar Network has committed over US$1.5billion to

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

s and for-profit companies across multiple investment areas. As of 2022, the organization has offices in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

Bengaluru Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

, and

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

History

The Omidyar Network comprises a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

and a

Limited Liability Company A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of ...

(LLC), and part of The Omidyar Group. It was established in 2004 by

and his wife Pam. In 2018, Omidyar Network spun off its Governance & Citizen Engagement initiative. The group now operates as Luminate, a global philanthropic organization that invests in civic empowerment, data and

digital rights Digital rights are those human rights and Natural and legal rights, legal rights that allow individuals to access, use, create, and publish digital media or to access and use computers, other Consumer electronics, electronic devices, and teleco ...

, financial transparency, and

independent media Independent media refers to any media (communication), media, such as television, newspapers, or Internet-based publications free of influence by government or corporate interests. The term has varied applications. Independence stands as a corne ...

. It is led by Stephen King. In 2019, Omidyar Network spun off its Financial Inclusion initiative. The group now operates as Flourish and is led by Tilman Ehrbeck, Arjuna Costa, and Emmalyn Shaw. A year later, the organization spun off its education portfolio as Imaginable Futures.

People

As of 2022, the CEO of Omidyar Network is Mike Kubzansky. Its board of directors include the managing directors of The Omidyar Group, Jeff Alvord and Pat Christen and in 2023 Michele Jawando was senior vice president for programs.

Investees

Omidyar Network invested in the microfinance sector, including Unitus Inc. In 2009, the Omidyar Network donated $2 million over two years to the

Wikimedia Foundation The Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (WMF) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, and registered there as foundation (United States law), a charitable foundation. It is the host of Wikipedia, th ...

, and at the same time, Matt Halprin of Omidyar Network was appointed to Wikimedia's board of directors. From 2012, Omidyar Network has been a partner of Better Than Cash Alliance. In 2017, Omidyar Network together with AVINA Americas and Avina Foundation founded the Latin American Alliance for Civic Technology (ALTEC) to invest in and support the development in Latin America of civic technology platforms and related scalable technologies. In 2020, it invested $150,000 in the legal assistance organization Whistleblower Aid.

Reporters in Residence Program

The Reporters in Residence program was launched in 2022 and is designed to give freelance reporters financial support (in the form of a monthly stipend) in an effort to increase coverage of deeper and more pressing economic issues.

References

External links