Sophia Akash Foundation

What Sophia Akash Foundation does

Sophia Akash Foundation (SAF) is a charitable incorporated organization (CIO) registered in England and Wales (charity no. 1169967), founded in 2010 and headquartered in London. The foundation operates as an incubator and supporter of social enterprises delivering essential services to poor and unserved communities in Africa and Asia, addressing financial inclusion, education, healthcare, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, skills training, and water/sanitation under its Path out of Poverty model. Its core offering is a six-stage incubation methodology covering enterprise evaluation, institutional assessment, business development planning, execution, capacity building, and impact measurement.

SAF's portfolio comprises six named social enterprises: eLimu (digital education in Kenya, reaching 1.2 million students), Sub-K (financial inclusion in India with 4,500 local banking agents serving 2.1 million households), Trine (solar energy in Sub-Saharan Africa, 180,000+ people served), ERC Eyecare (mobile eye care in India, 100,000+ patients), Kheyti (low-cost greenhouses for Indian smallholder farmers), and Plus Trust (edupreneur fellowship program in India). Collectively, these enterprises are reported to have positively impacted 4 million lives. SAF itself holds no proprietary technology platform; the foundation functions as a programmatic intermediary providing incubation support, capital readiness guidance, and ecosystem connectivity to portfolio enterprises.

SAF operates a donation-based revenue model with no commercial product pricing. Income streams include individual one-time and monthly donations (preset tiers of £1, £40, £80, £400 plus custom amounts), UK Gift Aid reclaim (25p per £1), corporate CSR partnerships, and affiliate shopping platforms (Give as you Live, Amazon Smile, GoRaise) with crowdfunding through GlobalGiving. The foundation is led by Founder and CEO Shailendra Patel (co-founder of Saxo Bank) with a board of trustees including former senior staff from Morgan Stanley, Omidyar Network, Enclude, and Herbert Smith Freehills, and operates a small distributed team (1-10 employees) across the UK, Denmark, Spain, and India.

Name

Sophia Akash Foundation

Legal name

Sophia Akash Foundation CIO

Website

https://sophiaakashfoundation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sophia Akash Foundation is a UK-registered charity (CIO, founded 2010) that incubates and supports early-stage social enterprises in Africa and Asia delivering essential services (financial inclusion, education, healthcare, agriculture, energy, skills training) to poor and unserved communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Enterprise Incubation

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM), Economic Growth, Livelihoods & Private Sector Development (BPADAEAE)

Keywords

• Social enterprise incubation
• Charitable foundation services
• Impact investment support
• Social venture funding
• Nonprofit incubation programs

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: One-time and monthly donations from individuals supporting the foundation's mission to build sustainable livelihoods for poor and unserved communities. Donation options include preset amounts (£1, £40, £80, £400) and custom amounts.
2. Gift Aid Scheme: UK tax reclaim program where the foundation claims 25p back on every £1 donated by UK taxpayers at no additional cost to the donor, increasing the value of donations.
3. Corporate Giving / CSR Support: Corporate partnerships where companies support SAF as part of their charitable giving or corporate social responsibility objectives.
4. Shopping Affiliate Programs: Percentage donations from online shopping through Give as you Live, Amazon Smile, and GoRaise platforms at no extra cost to consumers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Sophia Akash Foundation is a charitable incorporated organization (CIO) registered in England and Wales (charity no. 1169967) that incubates and develops early-stage social enterprises. Since its founding in 2010, the foundation has supported over 60 social enterprises across Africa and Asia by providing operational support, seed capital, and strategic guidance. Its work spans sectors including education technology, sustainable agriculture, financial inclusion, and clean energy.

Product overview

Sophia Akash Foundation (SAF) is a charitable incubator that supports social enterprises delivering essential services to unserved communities in Africa and Asia. The core offering is the SAF Incubation Program, a six-stage methodology that nurtures social enterprises from inception to sustainability. SAF's portfolio of supported enterprises includes: eLimu (digital education in Kenya), Kheyti (agricultural technology in India), ERC Eyecare (healthcare in India), Sub-K (financial inclusion in India), Trine (renewable energy in Africa), and Plus Trust (skills training in India). These enterprises collectively form SAF's product ecosystem, each addressing different sectors along the Path out of Poverty model: education, sustainable agriculture, healthcare, financial inclusion, renewable energy, and skills training.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Social Enterprise Incubation Program
• Donation Program
• Affiliate Shopping Program

Quantifiable outcome

• 4 million lives positively impacted through 60+ social enterprises since 2010
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ERC EyecarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerERC provides affordable, accessible and inclusive eye care to people living in poor communities in India. SAF supports this social enterprise in delivering eye care services to underserved populations, with ERC reaching 100,000+ patients.
• eLimucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnereLimu creates digital learning applications for primary school students in Kenya. SAF supports eLimu's digital education solution reaching 1.2 million students across 63 schools in Kenya and Uganda.
• KheyticoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKheyti provides low-cost greenhouses for smallholder farmers in India. SAF supports Kheyti in delivering agricultural solutions that help farmers protect crops from climate change and increase yields by 7x using 90% less water.
• Sub-KcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSub-K equips rural shopkeepers in India with technology to act as local bank agents. SAF supports Sub-K's financial inclusion network of 4,500 partners serving 2.1 million households with 264 million rupees in transactions.
• TrinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrine provides solar energy solutions for low-income rural families in Sub-Saharan Africa through crowdfunding. SAF supports Trine's renewable energy mission reaching 180,000+ people through partnership with BBOXX.
• Plus TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlus Trust provides fellowship programs for rural 'edupreneur' women in India to implement educational projects. SAF supports Plus Trust's skills training initiative for women in rural communities.
• Guru & JanaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner social enterprise working on development solutions.
• Michelmores SolicitorscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal services partner providing legal counsel and registered office services. SAF's registered office is c/o Michelmores, 12th Floor 6, New Street Square, London.
• Wrigleys SolicitorsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal services partner providing charity law expertise.
• KPMGminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProfessional services firm providing advisory support to SAF.
• AccentureminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProfessional services firm providing consulting support to SAF.
• CroweminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAccounting and advisory firm providing professional services to SAF.
• GlobalGivingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCrowdfunding platform partner hosting SAF's fundraising campaigns. SAF participates in GlobalGiving's verified partner program with crowdfunding campaigns for social enterprise projects.
• Give as you LiveminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOnline shopping affiliate platform where percentage of spending is donated to SAF at no extra cost to consumers.
• Amazon SmileminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAmazon's charitable shopping program where percentage of eligible purchases is donated to SAF.
• GoRaiseminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOnline shopping affiliate platform where percentage of spending is donated to SAF at no extra cost to consumers.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Omidyar Network: Philanthropic investment firm incubated by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, active across India and Sub-Saharan Africa in financial inclusion, education, and emerging-tech impact. Comparable given overlapping geographies, sectors, and board-level personnel connections to SAF (Ian Callaghan).
• Skoll Foundation: Major social-entrepreneurship funder backing proven innovators and ecosystem organisations. Comparable as a high-profile grantmaker focused on scalable solutions to global poverty.

Direct peers

• Echoing Green: Global fellowship that provides seed funding and leadership development to emerging social-enterprise leaders. Directly comparable to SAF as an early-stage social-entrepreneur incubator and grantmaker.
• Acumen: Global impact investor that incubates and invests in early-stage social enterprises tackling poverty across Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. Highly comparable as a social-enterprise incubator operating in the same geographies and sectors (agriculture, energy, financial inclusion) as SAF.
• Village Capital: Impact-investment and accelerator organisation supporting early-stage entrepreneurs in emerging markets, including India and East Africa. Highly comparable given overlapping geographies and an entrepreneur-led incubation model.
• Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation: Venture philanthropy fund that selects and supports early-stage, high-impact social enterprises with multi-year unrestricted funding. Comparable in supporting a curated portfolio of early-stage social entrepreneurs addressing poverty and related issues.
• Ashoka: Global network supporting leading social entrepreneurs ('Ashoka Fellows') with stipends, coaching, and connections. Comparable to SAF as a social-enterprise support organisation focused on scaling individual entrepreneur-led ventures addressing poverty.
• Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship: Foundation that identifies and supports a network of leading social entrepreneurs worldwide, often partnering with development-sector organisations. Comparable in mandate to incubate and connect social enterprises across emerging markets.
• Unreasonable Group: B-Corp that runs accelerator-style programs for high-growth social enterprises tackling major social and environmental problems. Comparable in incubating social enterprises and providing them access to capital, mentors, and networks.

Emerging players

• 100x Impact Accelerator: UK-based social-enterprise accelerator (linked to Oxford) providing funding and support to ventures tackling the UN SDGs. Comparable as a UK-rooted social-enterprise incubator with global ambitions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/sophiaakashfdn
• Facebookfacebook.com/Sophia-Akash-Foundation-109395593773592
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sophia-akash-foundation-cio
• Instagraminstagram.com/sophiaakashfdn

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sophia Akash Foundation