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Impact Engine
Impact Engine is a Chicago-based impact fund-of-funds manager founded in 2012, surpassing $250M in AUM by 2025.
Impact Engine
Impact Engine was founded in 2012, initially operating as one of the country's first accelerator funds for impact-driven startups. It raised three pre-seed accelerator funds between 2012 and 2014, then shifted into venture capital with a $10M fund in 2015 and a $25M fund in 2018. The firm incorporated as a public benefit corporation in 2018. The firm today deploys capital through two parallel strategies. Its Private Equity strategy builds a portfolio of funds balanced across growth equity and buyout stages, and co-invests in select portfolio companies of those funds. In 2022, it closed its second PE fund at $85M. Its Partnerships strategy creates bespoke investment vehicles tailored to partner objectives; since 2022 it has sub-advised two funds for Bernstein Private Wealth, an arm of Alliance Bernstein, totaling $95M. Investment themes include economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and health equity. Impact Engine surpassed $250M in assets under management in 2025 (per the firm). The team of 12 professionals is led by CEO Jessica Droste Yagan and CIO Priya Parrish, who also authored The Little Book of Impact Investing. The firm's board includes representatives from institutional allocators and impact investors. No additional offices beyond Chicago are listed. A structural differentiator is the firm's hybrid model: it operates as both a traditional fund-of-funds manager and a sub-advisor crafting customized private equity vehicles for outside institutions. This dual structure — combining capital from its own PE funds with separately managed accounts like those for Bernstein — lets it participate across venture, growth, and buyout stages while maintaining singular impact focus.
General information
Firm type
Fund of Funds
Year founded
2012
AUM
$250M (per the firm, 2025)
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Chicago
Corporate office
Chicago, IL, United States
Principals
Jessica Droste Yagan
Partner & Chief Executive Officer
Priya Parrish
Partner & Chief Investment Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Impact Engine?
Investment decisions are led by Priya Parrish, Partner & Chief Investment Officer. She wrote The Little Book of Impact Investing and oversees the firm's PE fund and partnership vehicles (per the firm's website). Jessica Droste Yagan serves as Partner & CEO.
Is Impact Engine structured as a single family office or a venture firm?
Impact Engine is a for-profit public benefit corporation and a registered investment adviser — not a family office. It operates as a fund-of-funds manager with two strategies: a private equity fund-of-funds and a partnerships arm that crafts bespoke impact vehicles for institutions.
Does Impact Engine invest directly in companies or only through funds?
Impact Engine primarily invests through other funds — making it a fund-of-funds — but it also selects co-investments in portfolio companies of those funds. Its partnerships strategy can combine fund investments and co-investments across venture, growth, and buyout stages (per the firm).
What investment themes does Impact Engine focus on?
The firm targets three interconnected themes: economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and health equity. It seeks funds that generate positive impact in these areas alongside financial returns (per the firm).
How is Impact Engine related to Bernstein Private Wealth?
Since 2022, Impact Engine has acted as sub-advisor for Bernstein Private Wealth's bespoke impact private markets fund-of-funds. Impact Engine manages Bernstein's first fund ($55M) and second fund ($40M), investing across venture, growth, and buyout (per the firm).
What investment stages does Impact Engine target?
Impact Engine's private equity strategy targets growth equity and buyout stages. Its partnerships strategy spans early-stage venture capital through buyout, depending on the custom vehicle (per the firm).
Where does the underlying wealth in Impact Engine's funds come from?
Impact Engine does not disclose the specific sources of wealth for its limited partners. The firm's capital comes from institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals, with Bernstein Private Wealth as a publicly named partner (per the firm).
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