By Logan Yonavjak Research shows that the majority of venture capital (VC) investments go bust. The model itself is centered around selecting unicorns that will achieve a home run and can cover the costs of other investments in a portfolio that fail. Much has been written about the failures of the VC approach as of […]
What You Need to Know About New ESG Fund Ratings
By Janet Brown What makes a fund sustainable? Many people think that sustainable means environmentally friendly, but sustainable investing actually covers three broad categories: environmental, social and governance (ESG). Environmental issues are typically the most widely understood, but social and governance policies are just as important. A socially responsible company seeks to treat its workers […]
Is Trump the Tipping Point for Ethical Investing?
By Joshua Levin You may have voted against U.S. President Donald Trump, protested his policies, and ranted to your friends. Yet most of us are financing him and his agenda. With any typical investment account, 401(k) or pension, Americans indirectly fund their opposition parties and directly finance polarizing activities such as weapons production, private prisons, and […]
Will Equity Crowdfunding Accelerate Impact Investing in 2017?
By Jamie Garuti This past May, a new world of possibilities opened up for social entrepreneurs around the country. The Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Title III, the final part of the 2012 JOBS Act. The new regulation allows for equity crowdfunding, a mechanism that ordinary people can use to become stakeholders of startups. […]
How to Move Sustainable Investing Into the Spotlight
I am new to the world of sustainable investments. For the last 25 years, before joining the Climate Trust, my career was centered almost exclusively on timberland investing. The corollaries between sustainable and timberland investing may not be apparent at first, but U.S. timberland investing is based almost entirely on sustainable forestry. In fact, most […]
The Quiet Progress of Green Property Funds
At the nexus between property developers and today’s socially-conscious investors stands an increasingly persuasive investment choice. Called a green property fund or impact fund, it’s an influential way for investment managers in emerging markets to match developers with those who aspire to both profits and positive change. The concept is simple: Fundraise from third-party clients […]
Why is Nobody Talking About Financial Advisors?
By Tyler Jackson If we want environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors to permeate all layers of the financial system, we need to talk about financial advisors. As Jessica Matthews, head of mission-related investing at Cambridge Associates, said at SOCAP16, “We need to think of advisors as a gateway, rather than a gatekeeper to impact […]
Missing the Target with Conservation Finance
By Sean Penrith “Are we doing enough?” This was the question Patrick Westerlund of the Wells Foundation asked a packed room in a session titled “Missing the Target” at the 2016 Mission Investors Exchange (MIE) conference in Baltimore. He added that with just the money represented in the room, we could change the world. Based […]
Sustainability Ratings: Coming to an Investment Near You
By Ben Gruitt Last month Morningstar Inc., an investment research and management firm, announced a new sustainability rating system would be available for funds on its North American and European websites as well as in Morningstar Advisor Workstation, the company’s Web-based practice management platform for advisors. The Morningstar Sustainability Rating aids investors in evaluating funds based […]
Why Policy Change is the Only Way to Open Impact Investing Floodgates
Bain Capital and Blackrock have created dedicated impact practices. High net-worth individuals and family offices are gathering to share deals, ideas and experiences. Foundations are sharing best practices. And yet, the amount of dollars invested in real projects and actual businesses is still a minuscule percentage of all invested capital. What’s holding us back?