Visa Foundation

/

OVERVIEW: The Visa Foundation invests in improving the livelihoods of underserved and low-income populations around the world. Throughout all areas of grantmaking, Visa prioritizes women’s economic advancement.

IP TAKE: This newer funder has the means and the reach to become one of the big names in philanthropy. The Visa Foundation’s strategies and grantmaking are still evolving, so it’s worth checking their site often for new developments, but we expect the foundation’s emphasis on women’ economic empowerment to inform other aspects of giving. While this is not an accessible foundation, preferring a proactive approach in its grantmaking, the Visa Foundation is approachable, though it is not always as responsive as it would like to be given the number of requests such a foundation may receive. However, patience is key here, so network to get on their radar.

This foundation also appears to be collaborative, so if you’re a larger foundation with established work, you might be able to approach Visa for a partnership.

PROFILE: Visa, one of the world’s leading global payments and financial services companies, established its philanthropic arm, the Visa Foundation in 2017. The foundation seeks to prioritize support for “the resilience and growth of micro and small businesses benefiting women” and the “broader community needs and disaster response in times of crisis.” Along with global development, humanitarian and disaster relief efforts, Visa prioritizes support for women’s economic advancement. The foundation’s funding areas continue and expand upon the corporation’s philanthropic initiatives: financial inclusion, humanitarian aid and community support.

Grants for Global Development, Women and Economic Opportunity

The Visa Foundation carries out grantmaking and investing with a goal of supporting small businesses, especially those benefiting women. Visa centers these women entrepreneurs in much of its foundation funding and works to catalyze women’s economic empowerment through some of its business practices, as well. The foundation’s inaugural grant was $20 million for Women’s World Banking, which works in emerging markets to create more economic stability and prosperity for women and their families and communities. This five-year grant’s target strategies include financial service delivery, impact measurement and sharing best practices, with an initial focus on India, Mexico, Egypt and Nigeria. Another key Visa Foundation grantee is the Aspen Institute’s Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE). It has a Gender Equality Initiative that seeks to address the gap in access to finance for women-led businesses, among other goals.

In April 2020, Visa also committed $200 million over five years to support small businesses worldwide, especially those “with a focus on fostering women’s economic advancement.” A few months later, Visa expanded and refocused the program to prioritize support for Black women-owned small businesses. Related work is conducted through both a gender and diversity lens.

Grants for Humanitarian and Disaster Relief

The Visa Foundation focuses its disaster and humanitarian aid grantmaking on working with governments, international relief organizations and other key actors helping communities impacted by crisis. Its humanitarian and disaster response aid includes grant funding, as well as, prepaid Visa cards to help families purchase basic necessities such as food and water. Examples of the foundation’s past work in the humanitarian aid and disaster response space include a partnership with the United Nations World Food Program to “deploy a mobile chase transfer program for thousands of Rwandan Refugees” and to provide Visa prepaid cards to local governments in Brazil whose community members were impacted by massive landslides.

Visa also pledged $10 million to support COVID-19 relief and recovery. The program’s grants seek to provide “immediate emergency relief to […] charitable organizations on the frontlines responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as public health and food relief, in each of the five geographic regions in which Visa operates: North America; Latin America and the Caribbean; Europe; Asia Pacific; and Central Europe, Middle East and Africa.”

Grants for Racial Justice and Indigenous Rights

Visa’s Visa Black Scholars and Jobs Program works to fund college-bound Black and African American high school students in the United States. Accepted scholars can renew the grant for up to four years and will have the opportunity to intern with the company. Additionally, “those who meet all program commitments” can expect to be offered a full-time job at Visa after graduation.” The program “is part of a larger effort at Visa to increase representation and cultivate a culture where everyone feels supported, celebrated and embraced for who they are.” Note that while the foundation has a dedicated program to support black scholars and careers, it conducts grantmaking that benefits BIPOCs across it’s interest areas.

Important Grant Information

The Visa Foundation does not accept unsolicited grant applications or requests for funding. It encourages grantseekers whose programs strongly align with Visa’s giving priorities to introduce themselves and their work through a brief email. However, it cautions grantseekers not to expect a response.

PEOPLE:

Search for staff contact info and bios in PeopleFinder (paid subscribers only).

LINKS: