Join us for a Deep Dive with IE Correspondent Christian Kingombe, author of the IE Magazine article Faith and the Future of Impact Investing, and three expert practiioners in the field of faith-based investing — Nicoleta Acatinei, Guillaume d’Alançon, and Xavier Heude.

Nicoleta Acatrinei is an economist and started her career in banking. The reality of the business world forced her to inquire about the relevance of the assumption of the egoistic nature of homo oeconomicus. This research question became the cornerstone of her academic trajectory covering fields as theology, anthropology, moral decision making and work psychology. She received her Ph.D. in 2014 from Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP), Switzerland, entitled Work motivation and pro-social behavior in the delivery of public services: theoretical and empirical insights (free download, published in 2016, Switzerland). She had been principal investigator and co-principal investigator of research projects on faith at work at Princeton University. She has been developing research and gave conferences on topics such as sustainable entrepreneurship, impact investing, Faith-based impact investing, sustainable development, etc. She has authored books, book chapters and journal articles, including: Saint John Chrysostom and Homo oeconomicus (2008); Let’s talk about money, let’s talk about human nature (2007); The determinants of work motivation in the delivery of public services: the case of the Swiss education sector (2015); and Perspectives of Saint John Chrysostom for the VUCA world. An integrative mindfulness program to cope with managerial challenges in a VUCA world.

Guillaume d’Alançon is married and the father of five children. After two years in human resources and six years in civil service responsible for culture and relations with the population, he spent eleven years leading a diocesan office in France. A frequent commentator and author on ethical and social issues, he has appeared in print, radio and television. In 2015, he founded LIFE-Europe, an association which connects professionals and volunteers to families and individuals facing difficulties through a network of family orientation centers, the “Accueil Louis et Zélie.” He joined Aliter Invest in 2019.

Xavier Heude used to work in the banking industry for almost 20 years until he decided to leave and co-found BACKBONE, a company specializing in the origination of SME-financing oportunities in developing and emerging countries. The intention is to contribute to protect human dignity through the financial support to SMEs that provide essential products and services to the population in need. Investment focus is : food, education, medical care and social inclusion.

Christian Kingombe attended Roman-Catholic primary and secondary schools before completing his BSc., MSc. and PHD in economics. He is Managing Partner of the 4IP Group LLC, an Impact Investing Advisory Boutique, which he co-founded in 2017 after working for a number of International Organizations, Think Tanks, and the African Development Bank. He is also the GP of a Tech Impact VCF named Invisible Heart Ventures based on ethical principles.

About Our Deep Dives

Deep Dives are hour-long Zoom Meetings: Live Q&A Sessions (as opposed to our Zoom Webinars, where the audience is in View-Only Mode) between the author(s) and/or subjects of a Magazine article and our members. Be sure to read the article in question and come bearing questions!