Deborah Drake

Biography

Deborah Drake has been with the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) since its inception in 2008. As Vice President, Investor Engagement and Research, she leads CFI’s investor engagement and governance efforts to strengthen the inclusive finance ecosystem. She also directs the Financial Inclusion Equity Council (FIEC), a membership organization of private entities making equity investments in financial institutions in the developing world. Deborah also leads CFI's research work in the impact investing space.

Prior to the establishment of CFI, Deborah held multiple leadership roles at Accion focused on developing and implementing financial initiatives to facilitate access by microfinance institutions to capital. She managed Accion’s $9 million guarantee fund for Latin America and the United States and led the financial analysis unit dedicated to data collection and analysis to achieve greater financial transparency and establish international standards of financial performance for microfinance institutions. Deborah also was responsible for the development and delivery of training to microfinance institutions in the areas of transformation, governance and investment readiness.

Deborah is co-editor of The Commercialization of Microfinance: Balancing Business and Development, and the co-author of Alchemists for the Poor: NGOs as Financial Institutions. Before joining Accion, she was a banking specialist at the World Bank and a commercial banker.
Deborah holds a bachelor’s degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and an MBA from Babson College. Deborah speaks English, Spanish and Portuguese and is a board member of Vista Ventures Social Impact Fund and Director Emerita of Root Capital.