Champions of Impact Investing
Thursday, September 27, 2018
By Abby Schultz
The Rockefeller Foundation coined the term “impact investing” in 2007 to describe private investments that generate a financial return alongside social or environmental impact.
At the time, the idea wasn’t new; it just didn’t have a name, and, more importantly, there wasn’t a cohesive strategy or infrastructure to support the development of a variety of investment products. There also wasn’t a large base of investors ready and willing to buy these investments if they did exist.
More than 10 years later, impact investing may not be mainstream, but it’s getting there, with at least $228 billion in invested assets mostly in private markets, according to the Global Impact Investing Network’s latest figures. When the definition is broadened to include public funds seeking to invest in companies with the best environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, practices, the level of assets swells to nearly $9 trillion, according to the latest figures from The Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment.
Photo courtesy of GotCredit.
Source: Barron's (link opens in a new window)
- Categories
- Investing
