Pierre Omidyar Philanthropy

Pierre Omidyar Philanthropy

Posted by admin in Business on September 28th, 2009 | no responses

Pierre Omidyar is the inventor of eBay. He is an alumnus of Tufts University and a French immigrant. Before he made his fortune with eBay he worked for Claris, an Apple Computer company. On Labor Day in 1995, Omidyar launched eBay as an online auction house, creating a market for virtually anything from lavatories to haute couture fashion. Today, there are over a million subscribers using eBay.

  • Pierre Omidyar and his wife set up the Omidyar Foundation in 1998 to finance nonprofit organizations. Inspired by how eBay made its 200-million strong market “trust a complete stranger,” Pierre Omidyar converted the organization into The Omidyar Network in 2004. Straddling philanthropy and investment, the new organization donates money to entities motivated to bring positive social change. Recipients include companies like Socialtext and Grassroots Media.
  • The Omidyar Network has also made a foray into microfinance, imparting small loans to prospective entrepreneurs among destitute people around the world.
  • Pierre Omidyar also presented a $100-million gift to Tufts University, which was used to create the Omidyar-Tufts Microfinance Fund, designed to invest in microfinance initiatives the world over.
  • The Omidyar Network also contributed a $4 million grant to the Grameen Foundation. This organization specializes in underwriting loans to Third World nations.
  • Pierre is looking forward to pledge $400 million in the coming years to sponsor nonprofit organizations promoting government transparency and suffrage.

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