Finance Leaders Fellowship · Aspen Institute

Ten Years of Finance Leaders Building What Matters.

The Finance Leaders Fellowship identifies, connects, and activates the most promising finance professionals in the world — and gives them the tools, the network, and the accountability to turn their ambitions into lasting impact.

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9
Cohort Classes
2016 – present
175
Finance Leaders
Across 6 continents
$2B+
Capital Deployed
By fellows' ventures
68%
Actively Building
Launched or active ventures
The Program

A Framework Built for Finance Leaders Who Want to Do More

Archetype Discovery

Fellows identify their unique venture archetype — Intrapreneur, Entrepreneur, Catalyst, or System Changer — and build a strategy aligned with who they actually are, not who they think they should be.

The Venture Journey

A structured four-phase framework — Gathering, Return, Reunion, Studio — that takes fellows from idea to execution with accountability, peer support, and expert guidance at every stage.

The Network Effect

172 finance leaders across 8 cohorts form a permanent, cross-sector network. Fellows co-found ventures, invest in each other, and open doors that no individual could open alone.

Lasting Accountability

Monthly check-ins, streak tracking, and peer visibility keep fellows engaged long after the fellowship year ends. The platform surfaces who is active, who needs a nudge, and who is ready to launch.

In Their Own Words

What Fellows Say the Fellowship Made Possible

"The fellowship gave me the language and the network to take what I was already doing and turn it into a movement."
Ellis Carr
CEO, Momentus Capital · Class of 2018
Deployed over $2B in mission-driven lending capital.
"My career has always been focused on addressing poverty and wealth inequality. The fellowship gave me the audacity to go further."
Tucker Bartlett
Racial Wealth Gap Initiative · Class of 2019
New financial products for Black homeownership, partnered with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Chase, and First Citizens.
"Faith in humanity. I do feel that my work is aligned with my purpose. The challenging part is creating a coalition of the willing."
Bahiyah Yasmeen Robinson
Founder, VC Include · Class of 2023
Helped launch and support 75 impact PE/VC funds across global markets.
"Finding and working with like-minded people generates those audacious ideas that lead to purposeful impact."
Dawson Her Many Horses
Capital Access Advocate · Class of 2023
Organized training for 50 bankers. Spoke to Congress about capital access in tribal communities.
The Data

Why Finance Leaders Join the Fellowship

Across 172 fellows, five themes emerge consistently when we ask what drives them. These are not abstract values — they are the lived experiences that make this cohort uniquely motivated to build.

Request a Briefing
38
Proximity to injustice
31
Systemic frustration
24
Personal calling / faith
22
Peer inspiration
19
Legacy and family
Live Activity

Fellows Are Building Right Now

This is not a retrospective. The platform tracks venture activity across all 9 cohorts in real time. Every month, fellows check in, update their status, and hold each other accountable.

37
Launched
82
Active
45
Planning
10
Drifting
1
Stalled
Support the Work

Help Us Build the Next Class

The Finance Leaders Fellowship runs on the belief that the right people, given the right tools and the right community, will build a more just and resilient financial system. Your support makes that possible.