Arjuna

Arjuna is a co-founder and managing partner of Flourish Ventures, an early-stage global venture capital firm that invests in mission-driven entrepreneurs and industry influencers working towards a fair financial system. With a primary focus on venture investing across emerging markets in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, Arjuna is driven by a deep compassion for vulnerable populations across the globe. He partners with entrepreneurs using innovative technologies to enhance their customers’ financial well-being.

Before Flourish, Arjuna was a partner at Omidyar Network, where he built a global portfolio of early-stage, inclusive fintech companies. Prior to that, Arjuna developed a deep understanding of the potential to radically alter traditional “brick-and-mortar” economics through mobile money solutions for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Before that, he invested equity and debt in consumer finance companies in emerging markets at The Rohatyn Group, a multi-billion dollar emerging markets investment firm.

In 2003, Arjuna co-founded a $120-million private equity fund focused on the turnaround of distressed commercial banks in Africa. The fund grew out of advising governments on the restructuring and privatization of its banking sector. Arjuna began his career at Lehman Brothers, where he spent five years financing power plants and airports globally.

Arjuna earned an MBA degree from Harvard Business School and a BA degree in Computer Science from Columbia University.

In The News
Events
embedded finance
[Flourish Conversations] The Corner Shop Isn't Dead: How Fintech and Embedded Finance Are Giving Them Extra Power
New research shows the corner shop is here to stay and poised to go digital. A $900B+ industry worldwide, fintechs are now serving corner shops across the retail value chain, developing low-cost, easy-to-use, online tools...
Events
opinion
[Podcast oficial da Brazil at Silicon Valley] Episodio 20 - Arjuna Costa, Managing Partner na Flourish Ventures
Nosso convidado este mês é o Arjuna Costa, Managing Partner na Flourish Ventures, um fundo evergreen de Venture Capital que nasceu a partir da iniciativa de Financial Inclusion da Omidyar Network. Com mais de 70...
Blog
founder wellness
Strong Startups Are Led by Healthy CEOs: Why We're Prioritizing Founder Wellness
As the fintech fundraising landscape shifts from boom times to a more challenging environment, we see the pressure ratcheting up on founders and their teams – passionate people who are already taxed by two years...
Blog
embedded finance
Why We Invested In Kamino: Gives Much-Needed Boost to High-Growth LATAM Startups
Repeat Founders Build Financial Infrastructure to Accelerate Time-to-Market and Provide End-to-End Financial and Corporate Solutions for New Businesses
Events
flourish focus
[Flourish Focus] A One-one-One with Mercê do Bairro Co-Founders
Find out how Brazil’s fintech start up Mercê do Bairro recently raised a $10 million Series A round with a vision to deliver an embedded finance platform that empowers small business owners.
Blog
embedded finance
Why We Invested In Dinie: Introducing Dinie, an Embedded Finance Platform for MSMEs in Brazil
Brazil’s 17 million micro-, small- and medium-sized businesses (MSMEs) face a significant credit gap. This is largely due to banks’ inability to effectively serve these customers with the short-term working capital products they need in...
Events
flourish focus
[Flourish Focus] A One-on-One with Mateo Jaramillo, Co-Founder & CEO, Heru
Join us for a discussion between Flourish Managing Partner, Arjuna Costa and Mateo Jaramillo, CEO and Co-founder of Mexico City-based Heru.
Blog
embedded finance
Why We Invested In Heru: A Mexico-based Gig Worker Platform Heru Offering Online/Offline Services
The vast majority of employment in Latin America isn't formal, and across the region, there are 145 million independent workers. Independent workers and gig-economy workers have been overlooked in Mexico and other Latin American countries,...
News
general
[TechCrunch] This Labor Day, spare a thought for the workers who made your doorstep delivery possible
A few weeks ago, I bought a used paperback mystery for $3 via a small online bookseller. Intrigued that the book came with free shipping, I dug in a bit and was shocked to see...
News
interview
[Business Day] Flourish Ventures sees mixed impact of COVID-19
By Jumoke Akiyode-Lawanson Arjuna Costa is a Managing Partner, Flourish Ventures, a venture firm of the Omidyar Group, that invests in fintechs and entrepreneurs whose innovations help people achieve financial health. In this interview with...
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