Nicole Van Der Tuin

My goal is to expand access to affordable capital for underserved entrepreneurs, primarily in small business. I've been working on this for 20 years on 5 continents through alternative data, predictive analytics and automation.

I am currently Chief Experience Officer at Accion Opportunity Fund (AOF, aofund.org), the largest nonprofit fund for small business lending in the US. For 30 years, AOF has invested over $1B in small business loans operating in economically distressed communities and owned by low-income households across the US. We also offer advising, leasing, grants, accelerator programs, webinars, in-person events and personalized digital learning for small business owners. We have created $5.4B in GDP over the last 10 years alone -- $36 for ever $1 of philanthropy raised for our lending.

I advocate for data privacy and consumer protection in fintech and have collaborated with organizations like the G20, World Bank, Basel Committee, Alliance for Financial Inclusion and Responsible Finance Forum, helping create standards and guidelines for investors and lenders.

First Access is a fintech platform that has helped lenders automate loan origination across emerging markets, saving over 400 years of cumulative wait time and supporting over 650,000 entrepreneurs and dependents. It's been recognized by FastCompany as "100 Most Creative," Entrepreneur Magazine for the “Brilliant 100 Companies," by Unreasonable for UN Sustainable Development Goal #1 (Poverty Reduction), by MIT and Mastercard Foundation for the Zambezi Prize and Fund for Rural Prosperity, by PopTech for Social Innovation, included in curricula of 12+ of the world’s top research universities including Harvard, Yale, MIT, Oxford and Cambridge, and featured in over 150 events, publications and media, including The Economist, Forbes, the Financial Times, American Banker and CNBC.

I've also worked with the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE) on international expansion, policy advocacy, and talent analytics on international mission-driven organizations supporting entrepreneurs. I helped design and launch MicroWorld (acquired by Babyloan, later acquired by Lendahand), which funded entrepreneurs in Senegal, Cambodia, Peru, Lebanon, Palestine, Madagascar and Tajikistan. I've contributed strategic research on PE/VC trends in emerging markets to Endeavor Global in NYC, on Chinese microfinance policy to PlaNet Finance China, and on Tibetan community healthcare programs at Surmang Foundation.

I hold an MPA in development economics from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a self-designed AB in social science research and writing from Kenyon College, where I graduated Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude, and with Highest Honors. I've also studied at Tsinghua University in Beijing and the School for International Training in Fortaleza, Brazil. I speak French, Portuguese, Mandarin and Spanish.