Beyond Remittances: Understanding UK Diaspora Investment Platforms and Networks

Abstract

Diaspora capital—long framed as personal remittances used for home-country poverty relief and consumption—is now actively pursued as a ready source of investment financing. This chapter examines the topology of diaspora capital and its investment implications. It opens with a survey of theoretical literature on diaspora investment and briefly analyses meanings of diaspora investment, examines structures repositioning remittances as “intermediates” to foster direct and indirect home-country investments, and determines current landscapes of diaspora investment patterns, platforms, and networks. This is followed by a qualitative assessment from structured interviews of seven UK-based collective Sub-Saharan African diaspora investment platforms and networks. The chapter concludes with a synthesis of theory and narratives—emphasising co- and divergences—and a discussion on possible frameworks for understanding diaspora investment organisations and decision-points critical to their success.