Just Passing Through?
Capital, place, and the data center buildout — plus a quick introduction to Quarterline & Rock and The Local Fund
Over the past 12 months, I’ve been working on a new firm and investment thesis with Maria and two of our INVANTI advisors who also live in South Bend, Susan and Scott Ford.
The TL;DR: we think there’s a big opportunity in building plumbing for local capital — finding ways to get already locally-controlled capital more locally invested in the businesses and places that shape our community’s long-term future. We’re starting with a vehicle called The Local Fund, an evergreen investment fund that partners with local businesses that need an exit or transition but want to stay locally owned. The fund is seeded by local capital, taking advantage of the incentive for both financial returns and the desire to build the community we all want to live in.
As we explore local capital, we think it’s just as important to understand external capital. There’s no better place to start than one of the largest capital buildouts in history, happening right now: data centers. In the growing debate — including in our own community in Northern Indiana — we wanted to pause the question of whether data centers are good or bad, and ask first: what kind of capital investment are they? Large capital investments differ not just in size but in whether they create local economic loops or simply pass through. Our first research brief, Just Passing Through? Capital, Place, and the Data Center Buildout, examines that distinction and what it means for how communities should structure deals, set expectations, and decide where to direct their attention.
You can find the research brief here and our firm’s landing page here.
A longer post on where this idea came from, how we’re starting, and what we think is possible will follow. In the meantime, if you want to hear more, reach out.