Impact Investing
Flexible, patient capital to connect communities and unlock opportunity.
Millions of people remain without high-speed internet — not because solutions don’t exist, but because the capital markets that connected the first half of humanity are structurally misaligned with connecting the second.
Traditional lenders are unfamiliar with the community broadband models best suited to rural and low-income areas. Private equity targets unrealistic returns. And grant funding alone cannot deliver universal connectivity.
Connect Humanity fills this gap by providing flexible, patient credit to community-centered broadband projects that deliver lasting local benefit — while proving that broadband can be a sustainable, impact-aligned investment.
How we invest
We deploy capital designed for community broadband:
- Flexible, blended finance. We tailor financing to project realities, working across municipal networks, co-ops, public-private partnerships, and mission-driven ISPs.
- Non-dilutive. We prioritize loans and revenue-based financing that help communities retain ownership and control of critical infrastructure.
- Responsibly priced. Broadband is a utility with long-term demand and predictable cashflows. With the right funding partners, projects can be sustainable and deliver responsible, not extractive, returns.
And we bring more than a check — pairing investment with technical assistance, business planning, and strategic support, including resources that help drive service adoption and long-term impact.
What we look for
We invest in broadband projects that combine community benefit with long-term viability, including:
- Sound network design and deployment plans that serve the community
- Meaningful community engagement and accountability mechanisms
- Sustainable business models grounded in local realities
Our Investment Vehicles
Status: Raising
Community Broadband Fund
Our flagship vehicle for deploying structured, impact-aligned capital into community broadband projects nationwide.
Status: Deploying
Co-investment and syndication
We partner with aligned investors and institutions to scale capital into projects that need it most.
Status: In Development
Growing the ecosystem
As an emerging CDFI, we’re working to expand the availability of financing tools for community-aligned broadband.
Status: Deployed
Pilot Fund I
Our Pilot Fund proves that thoughtfully structured capital can connect rural and low-income communities while delivering responsible returns.
Invested across five deals
Additional capital leveraged
People connected, with 100k more on the way
In economic ripple effects
Ready to partner?
Work with Connect Humanity to invest in community broadband that delivers measurable impact and responsible returns — or connect with us to explore available capital.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
About Connect Humanity
Yes. Tens of millions of Americans remain without reliable, affordable internet access, not because the technology doesn’t exist, but because traditional internet service providers lack the business models to serve high-cost, low-income, and rural communities profitably. Even where infrastructure exists, affordability remains a significant barrier. Connect Humanity works to close this gap by financing the community-centered providers best positioned to reach the people left behind.
Connect Humanity works across the United States, with a focus on rural and low-income communities that have been underserved by traditional internet providers. Our investments and programs span more than 20 US states, including communities in Appalachia, South Texas, the rural South, and beyond. We also support international digital equity work, with early programs in Brazil and ongoing exploration of how our financing models can be applied globally.
Connect Humanity is pursuing CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution) certification from the US Treasury’s CDFI Fund, and has received a CDFI Fund Technical Assistance award in support of that process. CDFIs are mission-driven lenders certified by the federal government to provide affordable capital to underserved communities. A broadband-focused CDFI would be a first of its kind, which we believe is essential to unlocking the scale of financing the sector needs. In the meantime, we operate with the same principles: flexible, affordable, non-extractive capital directed to communities that traditional lenders overlook.
Blended finance combines grants or concessionary capital (from philanthropies, governments, or development finance institutions) with commercial investment to make projects financially viable that the market alone would not fund. For community broadband, this typically means using grant or low-cost capital to reduce the overall cost of a financing package, bringing down interest rates and improving terms to a level that works for community-centered ISPs operating in low-margin markets. Connect Humanity structures blended finance that makes responsible returns possible for investors while keeping financing affordable for providers and the communities they serve.
For Communities and ISPs
We invest in broadband projects that combine community benefit with long-term financial viability. This includes municipal networks, cooperatives, public-private partnerships, and mission-driven independent ISPs. We look for sound network design, meaningful community engagement, and sustainable business models grounded in local realities. We work across a range of geographies and organisational structures. If you’re building affordable, reliable connectivity in an underserved community, we want to hear from you.
We provide flexible, patient credit tailored to the realities of community broadband. Our financing is low-cost (often below market rate), non-dilutive (we do not take equity), and adaptable to different project types, partnership structures, and uses of funds. We can lend solo or as part of a consortium, and we pair investment with technical assistance — including business planning, financial modelling, and support navigating federal funding programs like BEAD.
No. Connect Humanity prioritises non-dilutive financing structures — primarily loans and revenue-based financing — that allow communities and providers to retain ownership and control of their infrastructure. We believe broadband should be owned by communities, not investors.
Connect Humanity focuses on small to mid-sized deals — the financing gap that larger institutional lenders typically ignore. Our Pilot Fund investments have ranged from several hundred thousand dollars to over a million dollars per deal, often as part of larger blended capital stacks that unlock additional grant and private funding. We are a fit for community-scale projects that need a capital partner who understands the sector, we are built for this work.
For Investors
Yes. Broadband is a utility with predictable, long-term demand and relatively stable cashflows — characteristics that support responsible investment returns. Connect Humanity’s approach is to price risk appropriately rather than extract maximum returns, making community broadband a viable asset class for impact-aligned investors. Our Pilot Fund has demonstrated that thoughtfully structured capital can connect underserved communities while delivering responsible returns to investors.
The Community Broadband Fund is Connect Humanity’s flagship investment vehicle for deploying structured, impact-aligned capital into community broadband projects nationwide. It is currently raising capital from investors who want to advance digital equity while earning responsible returns. To learn more or express interest in investing, contact us at investments@connecthumanity.fund.
Community-centered ISPs — including municipal networks, cooperatives, and local independent providers — often cannot access capital from traditional lenders, who are unfamiliar with community broadband business models and expect returns that these providers cannot deliver while keeping service affordable. The capital that is available is frequently at the wrong size, rate, or terms. This financing gap is one of the primary reasons underserved communities remain unconnected despite the proven track record of community broadband models. Connect Humanity exists to fill this gap.
A community-centered ISP (internet service provider) is a broadband provider whose primary mission is to serve its community rather than to maximise profit. This includes municipal broadband networks run by local governments, cooperative networks owned by their members, and mission-driven independent providers operating in rural or low-income areas. These providers have demonstrated they can deliver fast, affordable internet to communities that large commercial carriers have historically ignored — but they need capital partners who understand their model and share their values.