Steve Hardgrave is the co-founder and CEO of Varthana, a company launched in 2013 and dedicated to improving education for low income families by providing financing and support to Affordable Private Schools and post-secondary students in India. Varthana currently serves 4,000 schools and roughly 3.5 million students across India.

Prior to launching Varthana, Steve managed commercial and grant-based investment portfolios at Omidyar Network and Gray Matters Capital, helping to develop and execute sector-based investment strategies around access to capital and education.

Steve's career began with a seven-year stint in Mexico, working initially with a local community development organization, and later launching a successful microfinance institution which continues to thrive.

His mix of entrepreneurship, international development and investment experience has given him unique ability to identify dynamic, underserved opportunities and successfully execute on them.

Steve holds a MBA from the Haas School of Business at University of California, Berkeley and a BA in economics from University of California, Los Angeles.

He has been blessed with an amazing wife and three daughters who have taught him even more than the universities have!