meta content Impact Investing CSR Sustainability name keywords p class blogtxtcomm blogpaddtop style font size 14px line height 18px color 414141 img alt src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 Impact Investing Blog jpg b5af8e38 b599 42cd 97f5 5b81d5672381 t 1478705314146 style width 100 p table align center border 0 cellpadding 0 cellspacing 0 style font family quot Helvetica Neue quot Helvetica Arial sans serif font size 13px width 100 tbody tr td height 20 table width 100 tbody tr td class header1 style font size 28px font weight bold color rgb 47 88 151 border bottom 2px solid rgb 47 88 151 Impact Investing td tr tr td class header2 style font size 20px font weight bold color rgb 47 88 151 padding top 10px padding bottom 15px A philanthropic approach to financial gains td tr tr td p class txti blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal font style italic color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Each passing day presents new risks and opportunities for investors across the world Today the desire of giving back to the society and the earth alongside achieving financial gains has made many investors tread a new path of investment called Impact Investing Impact investing is a practice of incorporating ESG strong E strong nvironmental nbsp strong S strong ocial and nbsp strong G strong overnance factors while making investment decisions p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify margin top 5px The impact investment model contests the traditional view that social and environmental issues should be addressed only by philanthropic means like donations while market investments should focus exclusively on achieving financial returns Impact Investing integrates these two otherwise opposite objectives of altruism and profit seeking by investing in the businesses that serve relatively ignored areas like rural healthcare education sanitation etc and have the potential to scale up While still comparatively small the impact investing industry is developing rapidly and is presently one of the most innovative and exciting segments in the finance arena With more and more investors embracing this model impact investing is at the cusp of metamorphosing from an investment approach into an asset class all by itself p p class textsubheading style font size 14px line height 28px Incorporating Social Responsibility in the Investments p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify The investment industry has been historically associated with greed This perception got more pronounced in the aftermath of the financial crisis of 2008 which brought the global economy to its knees It pushed the banks and investment firms to find ways to incorporate value into their investments The concept of impact investing which explicitly aims to achieve a positive impact on society or the environment with financial return offers a perfect avenue for such financial institutions p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Also pressure from the investing community including pension funds SWFs asking for more responsible investment strategies has also played a significant role in the evolution of impact investing p p class textsubheading style font size 14px line height 28px Strong growth potential p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Impact investing is a relatively new model and hence the size of its market cannot be gauged However the numbers released by The Global Impact Investing Network GIIN indicates that the market is growing at a significant rate As per a survey n 158 organizations conducted by GIIN in the early 2016 total respondents committed more than 15 Bn to impact investments in 2015 and have plans to increase it by 16 in 2016 Collectively as of the end of 2015 they managed 77 4 Bn in impact investing assets Considering the traction Impact Investing is generating today it has the potential to disrupt traditional philanthropic investment In fact many charitable foundations have started investing in impact investment funds e g IntelleGrow raised 1 8 Mn from the Michael amp Susan Dell Foundation in the early 2013 p td tr tr td class img rsp img spc style text align center padding top 15px padding bottom 15px img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 invest img 1 png 1d62d3e3 6a72 4c86 9074 3a7d29071625 t 1478705314790 td tr tr td class txti img rsp style font style italic text align center Source GIIN td tr tr td p class textsubheading style font size 14px line height 28px Impact investing is going mainstream p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify In the recent years major institutional investors such as Zurich Insurance and AXA Group have entered the impact investing market The momentum continued to build in 2015 with impact investing gaining favor with more and more institutional investors Here are some of the world s leading investing firms that have shown growing interest in the impact investing industry p ul style line height 25px li style text align justify strong Goldman Sachs Asset Management strong nbsp acquired Imprint Capital an investment advisory firm exclusively focused on impact investing li li style text align justify strong Bain Capital LP strong nbsp formed a new unit focused on impact investing li li style text align justify strong BlackRock Inc strong nbsp launched BlackRock Impact the firm s global platform catering to investors with social or environmental objective li ul td tr tr td class imgheading img rsp style text align center font weight bold font size 16px line height 28px padding top 15px Impact Investing AUM by Geography td tr tr td class img rsp img spc style text align center padding top 15px padding bottom 15px img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 invest img 2 png 8396c24a 6f75 4dd7 97ab 304f99f244cf t 1478705315112 td tr tr td table align center cellpadding 8px tbody tr class blogtableth td style background color rgb 86 114 146 color rgb 255 255 255 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse Investor td td style background color rgb 86 114 146 color rgb 255 255 255 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse Investment Details td td style background color rgb 86 114 146 color rgb 255 255 255 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse Investee td tr tr class blogtabletr td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 bill melinda png ddf222e8 bb5b 4a2d ad25 29b322f88ad8 t 1478705941850 td td style background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse strong Targeted Impact strong nbsp Enhance post secondary student retention and degree completion nbsp br strong Business Description of Investee strong nbsp Inigral creates virtual campus communities for post secondary institutions on its Schools on Facebook application nbsp br strong Investment Details strong nbsp 2 Mn of early stage Series B Preferred Equity td td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 uversity png 351c2a8e 6afe 4de3 9387 f54818cc3cc4 t 1478705438075 td tr tr class blogtablealtr td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 root capital png 20f2c684 9b6b 4545 b722 d8ef849bb9d8 t 1478705435538 td td style background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse strong Targeted Impact strong nbsp Enhance livelihoods for rural women nbsp br strong Business Description of Investee strong nbsp The Savannah Fruits Company is a Ghanaian company that produces shea butter for export and improves livelihoods for rural women by providing a stable well paying market outlet for raw shea nuts nbsp br strong Investment Details strong nbsp Multiple Trade Finance Loans with the average value of 0 38 Mn td td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 thesavanaah png 41dbf774 819b 417c bc82 bfd5ca43a115 t 1478705437263 td tr tr class blogtabletr td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 acumenfund png 34b5d7b8 4a0b 4067 9b11 7715b855e545 t 1478705311917 td td style background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse strong Targeted Impact strong nbsp Improve health outcomes for the poor nbsp br strong Business Description of Investee strong nbsp Sproxil is a social enterprise that uses technology to help consumers verify the authenticity of their medication to avoid the use of counterfeit pharmaceuticals nbsp br strong Investment Details strong nbsp 1 79 Mn of early stage Equity td td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 209 213 220 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 sproxil png 3966da5a 4619 47ee 98fa 5c61fba8b8ae t 1478705436669 td tr tr class blogtablealtr td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 snsreal png ed7b1cf3 c53f 49d7 90ac 969bacfe0729 t 1478705435868 td td style background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse strong Targeted Impact strong nbsp Increase access to financial services for poor women nbsp br strong Business Description of Investee strong nbsp Pro Mujer Bolivia is an established microfinance institution that provides credit services education and healthcare to poor women in Bolivia nbsp br strong Investment Details strong nbsp 3Mn in Senior Loans td td class img rsp style text align center background color rgb 233 235 238 padding 8px border 1px solid rgb 255 255 255 border collapse collapse img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 promujer png 28e9a1c5 1099 43a3 b83a bf7c7d5f87f6 t 1478705435127 td tr tbody table td tr tr td p class textsubheading style font size 14px line height 28px Upcoming investment p p class txti2 style font size 14px font weight normal line height 20px font style italic color rgb 47 88 151 text align justify strong Sir Ronald Cohen Chair of the Global Social Impact Investment Steering Group expects the impact investment industry to become a revolutionary 5 Trillion global market by 2050 strong p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Emerging geographies including the BRIC and African countries offer several exciting opportunities for impact investors to make a difference Within these regions a cross analysis of the mega trends of population growth aging and increased urbanization can reveal numerous areas where a sustainable business model catering to underserved niches can generate huge returns and positive impact at the same time p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Additionally the United Nations UN has identified a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals SDGs to alleviate poverty inequality and climate change by 2030 These SDGs in themselves present a gamut of opportunities for impact investing Most impact investments identify one or more of these SDGs on their focus area p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Government policies in several countries are also acting as a catalyst for impact investing E g in India as per the Companies Act 2013 large listed companies should mandatorily allocate 2 of their profit for social activities p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Industry experts are of the view that if this CSR money can flow into professionally managed charitable funds whose aim is to be an social Outcomes Fund it will channelize a large chunk of the CSR kitty towards impact investing p td tr tr td class imgheading img rsp style text align center font weight bold font size 16px line height 28px padding top 15px Impact Investment The Indian Connection td tr tr td class img rsp style text align center img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 invest img 3 png 123676ed 5cb7 4774 94b9 8cce52f6bb83 t 1478705434109 td tr tr td class imgheading img rsp style text align center font weight bold font size 16px line height 28px padding top 20px important Impact Investing AUM by Sector td tr tr td class img rsp style text align center img src http www sutherlandinsights com documents 10827 3856609 invest img 4 png c7888e7e 7b54 406f 979d 1a65dd53e1f8 t 1478705434671 td tr tr td p class textsubheading style font size 14px line height 28px Outlook p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify The world is currently facing many environmental and social issues These cannot be resolved by the government alone Here impact investing can come to the aid with its double bottom line approach towards investing by attracting a huge amount of untapped money p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify Impact investing can enable individuals and institutions to align their investment goals along the global development and sustainability priorities of the international community including the UN s Sustainable Development Goals SDG Through their scope and variety SDGs present a slew of potential areas for impact investors p p class blogtxtcomm style font size 13px font weight normal color rgb 88 89 91 text align justify While some remain unconvinced that investment can be both a morally legitimate and economically effective way to address environmental and social concerns impact investing is moving swiftly from mere a concept to an emerging asset class p td tr tbody table td tr tbody table p nbsp p