Established 1907
Panahpur
Place of refuge
About
Place of Refuge
"Panahpur" means place of refuge in Hindi, a meaning that guides everything we do.
We were originally established as a charitable trust in 1907 by Col Jacob, a British engineer based in Uttar Pradesh, India for the purpose of making a foundational investment in a village which he established as a safe haven for orphaned children. The village was named Panahpur and so was the trust. Soon after, the trust purchased a freehold in London to serve as a base for the Foreign Missions Club. During the 20th century, the trust's work expanded, supporting those offering refuge and support to excluded and marginalised communities anywhere. Col Jacob instructed the board to do "anything the owner of the capital would do" in the pursuit of that charitable purpose.
Panahpur has continued to make foundational investments to further its mission. In 2005, the trust committed to putting all of its capital to work in shaping a better world for future generations — recognising that much of modern investment fails to do so. In 2010, we invested in the first Social Impact Bond and subsequently co-founded the world's first fund to invest in Social Outcomes Contracts. We also invested in a number of emerging impact investment fund managers across asset classes. This led to the creation of Snowball in 2016, a predominantly private market asset management firm that we co-founded with the goal of establishing a new investment industry norm: delivering reasonable returns while intentionally shaping a better world. In 2025, Snowball was acquired by Tribe Impact Capital, our friends doing the same thing in public markets. This expanded our reach and enabled a more comprehensive offering to meet growing demand.
In parallel to our work with Snowball, we have continued to provide support to those offering refuge by serving excluded and marginalised communities.
A Platform
Hope & Wonder
As part of our support, and in response to the pandemic and lockdown, we launched the Wonderspace podcast asking six questions to leaders around the world. Those 150 conversations became the foundation of Hope & Wonder. In a world that increasingly pulls our attention inward toward anxiety, self-focus, and division, we need spaces that tell a different story — stories rooted in interdependence, hope, wonder, compassion, and the possibility that things can be different.
Hope & Wonder is a platform open to everyone to tell those stories. A space that turns our attention outwards towards the hopeful and extraordinary by giving people an opportunity to amplify others and share their moments of wonder. A place of refuge and resistance.
What guides us
Our Values
Our roots are inspired by the teachings of Jesus. They shape our values and guide our practice. His vision of life centred on radical love, inclusion, and justice — a different kind of story — is our refuge and prompts us to resist the world being overtaken by their opposite.