Sustainable student finance for the global south.
Unlocking future cash flows to�educate more students today.
Millions of talented youth:
The math of wasted potential.
2bn youth in low and low-middle income countries are disproportionately impacted by crises including Climate and Ecosystems, Health and Wellbeing, Peace and Inclusion.
Student finance that requires existing assets excludes the poor and overlooks potential.
Education without employment or proportional wages is a bad investment of time and money.
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9%�Tertiary enrollment rate in sub-Saharan Africa
Access to education should never depend on the postcode you were born into.
Banyan Education offers a powerful and ethical solution — giving young people in the global south a pathway to higher education without the burden of crippling debt.
Ethical income-sharing agreements (ISA), done right, are a tool for dignity, not dependence.
Tim Costello AO, Director of Ethical Voices
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A promising solution:
Income Sharing Agreements (ISA):
ethical outcomes-based student finance
No income, no payment. ISA are an adaptation of publicly financed income contingent loans (ICL), an Australian innovation (HECS) now deployed globally.
Employment focussed. ISA are underwritten by local providers for high demand skills from affordable quality educators.
$120M USD deployed in Africa and LATAM, providing education to over 30,000 youth.
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Payments are�proportional to income
Requires collateral
Pay while studying
Pay while unemployed
Pay the same�regardless of income
No collateral
Pay when earning
Pay when employed
Loan
ISA
Arlette, Rwanda.
Business Management Diploma, financed by Chancen International.
Completed high school in 2013.
Oldest of 5 children. Parents lacked the capital to secure a loan for tuition.
Worked small jobs to save money for school, but these were insufficient.
Investment
Arlette’s Business Management Diploma cost USD $1,500.
Return
Once earning a living wage, Arlette will pay 10% of her income for 5 years.
Impact
Increased lifetime earnings, and ability to support family members with high school tuition and living expenses.
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93%
Graduation Rate
85%
Employment Rate
4.68x
Earnings Increase
The obstruction to scale:
Every dollar deployed is locked up until repaid.
ISA are a long term investment: up to 5 year wait from commencing studies to first payment.
Illiquidity and risks deter direct investment, including graduation, employment and macro-economic risks.
No secondary market locks in investors, and prevents patient risk-tolerant capital being efficiently re-deployed again and again to educate more students today.
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18 years�Commencing studies to final payment (3 year qualification)
A solution borrowed from other asset classes:
We unlock future ISA cash flows, to educate more students today.
Investing in future repayments of employed and re-paying graduates, aligns investment with impact and providing returns from day one.
Re-deploying risk tolerant capital more frequently educates more students faster.
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Education
3 years
Repayment
15 years
Graduated
Employed
Repaying
Repayment
Graduated, Employed, Repaying
4x Impact
Opportunity
Purchasing future ISA cash flows allows capital to be redeployed today!
Talented youth are waiting:�Invest in a track record of success,
and educate the next generation.
ISA are the only viable and scalable student finance solution for youth born into poverty.
ISA providers have waitlists, reflecting high school graduation rates 5 times higher than the tertiary enrolment rate in sub-Saharan Africa.
Education providers have capacity to accommodate 10,000 additional ISA annually across 50+ institutions.
Capital is the limiting factor.
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USD $120m
Deployed in Africa and LATAM,�but locked up until repaid.
Banyan Pilot:�USD $2m invested today to unlock the potential of youth born into poverty.
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A solution beyond education:
Equipping youth to solve their greatest challenges.
Now: Banyan Pilot�USD $2m deployed over 5 years
Demonstrate viability and impact through mature providers in Africa and LATAM.
Next: Banyan Fund�USD $1bn deployed over 20 years
Climate & Health crises tackled by institutional investors through future youth workforce.
+500
Employed Graduates
Next: Banyan Foundation (NFP)�USD $100m deployed over 25 years
Emphasis on shorter high impact vocational programs, expanding to Asia Pacific and beyond.
+200k
Employed Graduates
+1.8m
Employed Graduates
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Banyan Pilot
Deploying USD $2m to educate youth in Africa and LATAM.
Target returns of 4-6% per annum, principal and interest over 5 years, to demonstrate sustainability of model.
Pilot will demonstrate impact and sustainable returns, validate risk and pricing models, gather data, and prove capability, necessary for launching a licensed investment fund.
Impact Targets
Preferred Partners
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Traction
4 team members with the experience to deliver.
AUD $100k seed funding raised to prepare for pilot.
6 partners and supporters.
2 preferred ISA providers identified for pilot. NDA’s signed. Due diligence underway.
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Banyan Education is a partner for Project J1263N with Global Development Group (GDG; ABN 57 102 400 993). GDG is a charitable Non Government Organisation [NGO] carrying out humanitarian projects with approved partners and providing aid to relieve poverty.
ISA Providers and Partners
Supporters
Charitable Giving Partner
Founding Team
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James Ramsay
CEO and Co-Founder
Banyan Education
Previous product leader at tech unicorns Remote and GitLab, both pioneers of global remote working. At Remote, James led payroll products processing over US$2bn+ annually, and expanded coverage to 96 countries.
Simba Marekera
Deputy Chief Investment Officer and Head of Private Assets, Brightlight
Simba brings deep financial and impact investing experience, and is advising on the design and implementation of the fund. We anticipate Brightlight to be a service provider in the future.
Ross Kelly
CEO, Cassinia Community
Cassinia Community has provided funding and support incubating Banyan Education. Ross brings diverse global experience in mining to training/developing local staff, in PNG to the Arctic Territories, and everywhere in between.
Paul Dettmann
Co-Founder and Director�Banyan Education
Founder of Cassinia Environmental, protecting and restoring nature throughout Australia and Cassinia Community launching a range of social enterprises.
Banyan Education is a smart, ethical way to create opportunity for young people who would otherwise be left behind.
It’s the kind of innovation we need — deeply fair, practical, and built on a vision of dignity for all.
Mick Turnbull, Non-executive Director (previous Chair), CBM Australia
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Income Share Agreements (ISA) have the potential to deliver the insurance benefits associated with repayments being based on capacity to repay.
Where governments are unwilling or unable to implement Income Contingent Loans (ICL), successful ISAs provide the benefits insurance aspects of public sector ICLs and the case for exploring their potential is strong.
Professor Bruce Chapman AO, Australian National University
Architect of Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS)
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When we began the microfinance movement, the world thought the poor needed charity.
But what they really needed was a chance — a way to unlock their God-given potential.
Banyan Education carries that same spirit into the realm of education: creating pathways for young people to invest in their future with dignity and hope.
David Bussau AM, Founder, Opportunity International
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