GIIN in the news Press releases

  • The GIIN Launches IRIS+ Impact Investment Measurement System

    via Private Equity Wire

    June 28, 2019

    Summary

    Private Equity Wire covers the launch of the GIIN’s IRIS+, crediting it as “an easy-to-use system” that will benefit investors who are “eager for streamlined practical guidance on how to measure and manage their impact.”

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  • GIIN: Setting the Bar

    via IPEby Susanna Rust

    June 28, 2019

    Summary

    As part of IPE magazine’s May 2019 special report on impact investing, Susanna Rust spoke to GIIN CEO and co-founder Amit Bouri about the GIIN’s Core Characteristics of Impact Investing. In doing so, she also references the speech Bouri delivered at Impact Summit Europe in April about the urgent need to scale the industry and to do so with integrity. Rust highlights the necessity of such guidelines by including a powerful excerpt from Bouri’s speech: “Slow and steady does not win all races. Slow and steady is definitely not the strategy when it comes to addressing the world’s social and environmental challenges.”

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  • Commentary: Has Impact Investing Reached a Fork in the Road?

    via Pensions & Investmentsby Amit Bouri

    June 28, 2019

    Summary

    In an Op-ed for Pensions & Investments, GIIN CEO and co-founder Amit Bouri discusses the big picture challenge the impact investing industry is currently facing: that despite “considerable progress” it is “not moving fast enough on addressing the major problems the world faces.” Bouri states that the path the industry must take is one that leads to “nothing less than a transformation of the financial markets” which will “create a world where every investment accounts for social and environmental impact.” He concludes the piece by listing a three-part mission for achieving this goal, and calls for “deliberate, focused, coordinated action from visionaries committed to a new future.”

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  • People, Planet and Profits: Impact Investing Exceeds $500bn

    via Al Jazeeraby Ben Piven

    June 24, 2019

    Summary

    In this Al Jazeera coverage of the GIIN’s 2019 Annual Impact Investor Survey, Ben Piven shares key findings about the state of the impact investing market and remarks that “this investment strategy is winning more converts—and crucially, it’s gaining capital too.” Piven also includes insights from the GIIN’s Amit Bouri and Sapna Shah to contextualize the survey’s findings, including Bouri’s statement that “Global challenges like entrenched inequality and climate change require large-scale, urgent action. And impact investors are stepping up to help fuel positive progress.”

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  • Growing Universe of Impact Investors Satisfied With Results

    via Barron'sby Abby Schultz

    June 24, 2019

    Summary

    This Barron’s PENTA article shares key findings and insights from the GIIN’s ninth Annual Impact Investor Survey. Specifically, the piece notes that the report “reveals an industry that’s growing steadily and is increasingly diversifying….And that growth will be essential if impact investing is to address the huge challenges the world faces.” Abby Schultz discusses this growth with the GIIN’s Amit Bouri, who states that these survey results mean “two things that may feel contradictory—that the impact investing market is larger and more robust than it’s ever been, and it’s nowhere near where it needs to be.”

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  • Survey: 91% of Impact Investors Happy With Performance

    via Financial Advisorby Karen DeMasters

    June 24, 2019

    Summary

    Financial Advisor News features new data about performance relative to impact investors’ expectations. Specifically, the article highlights key findings from the GIIN’s recently published 2019 Annual Impact Investor Survey, which found that “investors who want to make a positive difference with their money said they are meeting both their impact investing goals and their financial goals.” The article also includes survey data reflecting respondents’ goals, purpose, and growth within the impact investing sector.

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  • Impact Investing Doesn't Require Sacrificing Returns, GIIN Survey Shows

    via Private Equity Newsby Luis Garcia

    June 24, 2019

    Summary

    This Private Equity News article features the GIIN’s 2019 Annual Impact Investor Survey to highlight recent developments in the market, noting that “investors [have] become increasingly aware of issues such as climate change and social inequality” and that over 90% of impact investors report “their deals have met or exceeded their expected financial and impact performance so far.” The piece also quotes the GIIN’s CEO, Amit Bouri, about the importance of such data collection, saying that as the industry matures, “investors will become more familiar with the strategy, and businesses looking to generate impact will find it easier to identify suitable investors to back them.”

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  • Investing for Social Impact Is Complicated. Here Are 4 Ways to Simplify It.

    via The New York Timesby Paul Sullivan

    May 16, 2019

    Summary

    In this article, Paul Sullivan details four ways to simplify investing for social impact. Specifically, he highlights the GIIN's IRIS+ system for impact measurement and management and quotes GIIN CEO, Amit Bouri. "The new version, IRIS+, is meant to translate impact investing goals like gender equity, climate change and affordable housing into results, said Amit Bouri, the chief executive of GIIN. He said the new system would help investors know exactly which metrics to track if they hoped, for example, to bring clean energy to rural areas."

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  • Getting a Handle on Investing Options in the Age of Accelerating Climate Change

    via CNBCby Kathryn McDonald

    April 14, 2019

    Summary

    In this article for CNBC, Kathryn McDonald shares insights from a recent study by the National Climate Assessment, which predicted that changes in climate will cause severe damage to the U.S. economy and impact investment management decisions. As such, she provides recommendations for ways companies can think through investment options with a climate lens. McDonald believes that by viewing companies through a climate lens we can “augment our traditional investment view [with the] proactive steps that companies are taking to gain a more nuanced assessment of a company’s fair value and future earnings potential.”

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  • MacArthur Foundation Joins Rockefeller, Omidyar to Unlock Impact Financial

    via Barron'sby Abby Schultz

    April 14, 2019

    Summary

    Barron’s PENTA promotes the launch of a new $150M initiative created by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Omidyar Network, which was announced at the GIIN’s recent annual Investor’s Council meeting. This new initiative, called the Catalytic Capital Consortium, aims “to unlock billions, or even trillions, of further investment into solutions that achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, by providing investment capital ‘that is patient, risk-tolerant, concessionary, and flexible,’ unlike conventional capital that aims for market-rate returns.” Julia Stasch, President of MacArthur, says “Catalytic Capital can help create proof points of future profitability, and they can be part of a blended approach that makes it possible for financing to be available to populations and places that would not otherwise be possible.” The initiative will also give $10 million in grants over the next three years to further develop the market.

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  • Growth in "Gender-Smart" Investing Helps Sisters Do It For Themselves

    via Reutersby Sarah Shearman

    April 14, 2019

    Summary

    This Reuters article discusses the widespread trend of gender lens investing and interviews several female executives in the impact investing industry, including Sapna Shah, Director of Strategy for the GIIN. Author Sarah Shearman examines the rapid growth in popularity of the practice, including a recent 73% increase in the value of private funds with a gender focus. Shearman also mentions that the anticipated shift of private wealth towards women and millennials in the West will only serve to continue this trend of investing to reduce gender inequality. 

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  • How Socially Conscious Young Investors Are Putting Their Money Where Their Ideals Are

    via CNBCby Brandon Gomez

    April 14, 2019

    Summary

    In this article for CNBC, Brandon Gomez examines the role of millennials in the impact investing space, citing studies which find that members of this generation are increasingly considering social impact when making investment decisio­­ns, and are twice as likely to invest in companies that incorporate environmental and social practices. Gomez adds that the “democratization” of investing through various technological advancements, such as apps, has made impact investing easier and more accessible than ever before, and appeal to millennials in particular.

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