GIIN Investor Forum 2018

In this article, Rupert Scofield of FINCA International details a call for greater financial inclusion to spark a bottom-up approach to create more inclusive and sustainable markets. He notes, “To create lasting change, I have always held to the conviction that investment and financial prosperity must come from the bottom-up, not the top-down… While charity and redistribution should be part of the solution, many of us in this trade believe the real hope lies in market-based solutions.”

This article explores how holding company or “holdco” structures can help investors to take “long-term stakes in operating companies that deliver benefits such as affordable housing, financial inclusion and sustainable fisheries.” The piece details how traditional closed-end structures that typically span 10 years, "do not always give portfolio companies the time they need to generate optimum financial value or sustained social or environmental results." As such, the market is seeing impact investors expressing interest in--and developing holdco structures to create lasting impact.

In this article, Abby Schultz provides an overview of key findings from the GIIN's report, The Financial Performance of Impact Investing Through Private Debt. The piece quotes GIIN Research Director Abhilash Mudaliar on the significance of this type of data, “Performance data is critical information for investors who want to make informed choices, “and to better be able to compare and contrast performance against other aspects of their portfolios as well as their peers.” The article also describes how impact investing has gained a lot of traction, but also highlights how more capital is needed to solve global challenges. Schultz quotes GIIN CEO Amit Bouri, “One way to attract that capital is by bridging knowledge gaps in both financial performance and impact measurement.” 

This article provides coverage of the GIIN’s Roadmap for the Future of Impact Investing. Specifically, the piece highlights the GIIN’s call for the investing community to take various actions to increase the scale and effectiveness of impact investing and quotes GIIN CEO Amit Bouri about his vision for the future of financial markets.

In this article, Lee Mannion shares data and insights about the growth of the impact investing industry and features the GIIN’s vision for the future of financial markets. He also quotes GIIN CEO Amit Bouri about why investors are increasingly interested in the market, "It is possible to make a profit and do good for the world. That is what has captured the attention of so many people when it comes to impact investing.” This piece was initially published in Reuters.

This article provides an overview of what impact investing is, what it is not, and how wealth advisors and other consultants will play a key role in realizing the GIIN’s future for financial markets, where all investments contribute to positive social and environmental impact. The piece underscores how the GIIN Roadmap for the Future of Impact Investing can help advisors to monitor developments in the field to respond to client demand. It also provides an overview of the five other categories of action required to achieve this vision for the future of financial markets.

This article provides coverage of the Roadmap for the Future of Impact Investing, which presents a vision for more inclusive and sustainable financial markets and articulates a plan for impact investing to lead progress toward this future. The piece comments on how the impact investing market could go from billions to trillions, and quotes GIIN CEO Amit Bouri on the need to take action “immediately and with urgency."

In this piece, Paul Sullivan shares insights about impact investing from various industry leaders, including: Jean Case of Case Foundation, Amit Bouri of the GIIN, Douglas Cohen of Athena Capital Advisors, Kristin Hull of Nia Impact Capital, Erika Karp of Cornerstone Capital, and R. Paul Herman of HIP Investor. The article shares tips that impact investors should consider (to invest with a conscience and still make money), such as: “do your homework, define your priorities, fill the gaps, grade on a curve, and set your expectations.”

This piece provides coverage of the Nathan Cummings Foundation’s move to invest its entire $440-million asset pool in ways that drive social change. The article highlights how this announcement follows last year’s decision by the Ford Foundation to commit up to $1 billion to impact investing over a decade, and signals that the market may continue to see more foundations make similar commitments to align their endowments with their values. The piece quotes GIIN CEO Amit Bouri, "We will continue to see more announcements like this one ... as more foundations realize that they are leaving their resources on the sidelines instead of putting all of their assets to work.”

Published on International Women's Day 2018, this article demonstrates how much of the wealth transferred in the coming decades will end up in female hands. Specifically, the articles comments on how the gender wealth gap is gradually narrowing and, "as money managers seek to attract and serve rich women, and as those women express their values through their portfolios, the impact will be felt within the investment industry and beyond." The article also calls attention to gender lens investing as a growing trend in the market.