Tracking the impact space’s fluctuating flows
Impact investing has had a rough time of it lately, what with the dramatic change in the political weather turning US-based LPs off explicitly impact-labelled strategies. European and Asian LPs are increasingly filling that fundraising gap, but in the meantime some GPs have been left questioning both the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ of impact investing. Headwinds, though, can sometimes be winds of change…
Impact investing finds new centres of gravity
With fundraising in the doldrums and US LPs backing away, impact-focused GPs must look elsewhere for capital.
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Private equity’s energy transition mission
PE has a key role to play in decarbonisation, but forging an effective real-world strategy presents a complex challenge for the asset class.
The key trends shaping the impact investing market
Impact strategies continue to attract LP capital, with climate-related themes remaining a particular draw.
Nuveen: Impact investing is a flourishing ecosystem
The impact industry is prospering across the continuum, from venture and growth capital to a burgeoning larger deal space, says Nuveen’s global head of private equity impact, Rekha Unnithan
Actis on the emerging markets multiplier effect
It is possible to generate competitive returns in emerging markets alongside outsized impact, from social outcomes to the energy transition, say Shami Nissan at Actis and Sumit Barat at portfolio company BluPine Energy
WCGMF’s Strawter-Anthony on aligning endowment with mission
The William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund integrates impact analysis into its investment process to ensure its endowment is aligned with its mission, says Sheena Strawter-Anthony.
How UK Local Government Pension Schemes became a major impact investor
The introduction of pooling has given UK Local Government Pension Schemes access to the largest private markets impact funds.
Tikehau Capital: Private equity’s role in powering climate resilience
Decarbonisation and regenerative agriculture strategies are about more than tackling climate change, they are about creating long-term sustainable value, says Lindee Wong, director of climate and biodiversity at Tikehau Capital
Seeking the ‘missing middle’ of climate finance
Impact investors are looking for new investment avenues for the industry’s growth.
KPMG: Embedding sustainability into business plans
As regulation proliferates, GPs are increasingly turning to scenario analysis and taking a more integrated approach to sustainability and impact considerations, say KPMG’s Elizabeth Ming and Simon Weaver
An AI revolution in impact?
Impact measurement and reporting could be transformed with artificial intelligence tools.
As the impact market matures, investment approaches, strategies and specialisms are becoming more nuanced, practices are becoming more sophisticated, and the number of players continues to proliferate. This report examines the challenges and opportunities the market faces as it scales, including a more muted fundraising environment, growing regulatory complexity, the development of impact-linked incentive mechanisms, and LP-GP alignment.
As impact assets under management soar past the $1 trillion mark, this special report examines some of the key thematic areas being targeted by impact investors, looks at what managers are doing to differentiate themselves in an increasingly crowded market, and explores how the industry is working to tackle challenges around data collection, reporting and benchmarking.
In this special report, Private Equity International examines what role impact investors can play in addressing one of the most pressing challenges of our time: the climate crisis. We also explore developing trends in the impact industry, including the arrival of new players in the space and emerging models for tying carried interest to impact and ESG targets.
Download PEI’s special report on impact investing 2021
In the magazine: Private equity’s role in the fight against climate change; The GPs tying carried interest to impact; The LPs targeting impact investing; Keynote interviews with industry leaders; Plus much more…
Impact investment’s role in the fight against climate change
As governments, climate experts and campaigners gather at COP26, how are impact investors tackling the defining challenge of our era?
Key trends in impact investing
From new entrants and approaches to increasingly pressing challenges, the impact investing market continues to grow and become more nuanced.
The GPs tying carried interest to impact
Pioneering fund managers are making the ultimate GP prize – carried interest – contingent on impact or ESG metrics. Is this the future?
BlueMark: Verifying impact
As the impact investing space continues to expand, stakeholders are increasingly seeking evidence that GP claims about impact hold true, says BlueMark’s Christina Leijonhufvud.
Golding Capital Partners on developing a green niche
Investors are embracing green solutions in areas ranging from farming to fintech, but early movers with deep domain expertise will have an advantage, says Golding Capital Partners’ head of impact, Dr Andreas Nilsson.
GIIN: It’s time to act on climate change
Climate action is critical and investing in solutions can make a major impact, says Amit Bouri of the Global Impact Investing Network.
DPI: What investors want from impact
Impact investing is an increasingly prevalent strategy, but LPs need better tools for measuring results, say DPI’s Runa Alam and Vincent Lecat.
Schroders: Supporting a covid recovery in emerging markets
Impact investing has an important role to play in emerging markets in the wake of the pandemic, offering opportunities for investors, says Schroders Capital’s Maria Teresa Zappia.
Anthos: Attitudes to impact are evolving
The pandemic has highlighted that impact investing can be an effective tool for addressing a wide range of challenges, says Anthos Fund & Asset Management’s Dimple Sahni.
KPMG on the opportunity for collaboration in impact
Greater sophistication around impact and ESG, and a heightened focus on value creation, are presenting new ways for GPs and portfolio companies to work together, says KPMG’s Tania Carnegie.
Asia Green Fund on impact in Asia
The opportunity to invest behind China’s carbon reduction goals is immense, says Asia Green Fund’s chairman and CEO, Dr Bo Bai.
The investors targeting impact
Investors are turning to impact to direct their money towards areas that align with their missions and values.
Trill Impact: Creating real returns and lasting impact
Investing with an impact lens will not only make the world a better place; it will also create more sustainable and valuable businesses, say Trill Impact’s Jan Ståhlberg and Pia Irell.
Nuveen: Integrating impact into financial analysis
Quantifying trade-offs can help construct portfolios that best serve risk, return and impact outcomes, writes Gwen Busby, head of research and strategy at GreenWood Resources, Nuveen’s forestry investment specialist.
The bittersweet growth of the impact scene
Frustration or bemusement aside, the pioneers of the impact scene should not be put out by the new arrivals.
Apis Partners on why impact will soon be standard
Taking an impact-focused approach will soon be a requirement and not a differentiator, say Udayan Goyal and Matteo Stefanel, managing partners at Apis Partners.
Raven’s Jeff Cyr on investing in Indigenous communities
A culturally informed impact approach can benefit undercapitalised Indigenous communities, says Jeff Cyr, managing partner at Canadian venture capital firm Raven Indigenous Capital Partners.
The arrival of the big private equity players has turned a niche product into an established strategy. While scepticism remains about whether you can have both positive social and environment outcomes alongside strong financial returns, even cynics concede that impact investing is making waves far beyond what was envisaged 10 years ago when a few pioneers trialled the first impact bonds and eco funds. We ask what the next decade holds for an investment movement with the potential to reinvent capitalism.
Download PEI’s special report on impact investing
In the magazine: Making an impact – how a niche product became an established strategy; The perils of green washing; Keynote interviews with Nuveen, CDC Group, Development Partners International and KPMG. Plus much more…
Impact investing goes mainstream as big players arrive
Private equity heavyweights such as Bain, TPG and Partners Group are moving into impact, making it an established strategy.
Nuveen on maintaining integrity in impact
As the impact investment ecosystem continues to expand, players must be held accountable for delivering on their promises, say Rekha Unnithan and David Haddad, co-heads of impact investing in private markets at Nuveen.
How can managers avoid green washing?
How can we be sure impact investment claims are accurate? Private Equity International goes inside the race to develop better measurement frameworks.
CDC embraces diversity to support returns
Diversity and inclusion have become an increasingly important part of any due diligence when assessing funds or an underlying company, but there is still some way to go, says CDC Group’s Clarisa De Franco.
Rebecca Fries on using a gender lens to increase impact
Value for Women’s Rebecca Fries explains how investors can improve their opportunities to innovate and their impact, particularly in the wake of covid-19.
Impact investing: Is it reinventing capitalism?
The social and economic vulnerabilities exposed by the coronavirus could propel the world of impact investment to new levels.
Development Partners International on integrating impact
As the adoption of ESG criteria becomes mainstream and impact investing continues to evolve, we asked Development Partners International CEO and co-founder Runa Alam and head of ESG and impact Michael Hall about the firm’s approach.
Why impact investment must become the norm
The sector must follow in responsible investment's footsteps, says Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, founder and managing partner at impact investing platform Bamboo Capital Partners.
So what exactly does impact investing stand for? Sceptics question whether it can achieve all that its proponents claim, but if you’re looking to survey exactly what it is trying to do then Private Equity International‘s A-Z is a great place to start.
Six trends in impact investing
From agriculture to zero waste, PEI's A-Z shows how impact has entered the investing mainstream.
Video: A-Z of impact investing
PEI teamed up with an illustrator to show just how diverse impact investing is.
A-Z of Impact Investing: A-E
In the first part of our A-Z, we examine agri-investing, blockchain, clean technology, diversity and education.
Goldman Sachs on the shift to low carbon technologies
The sharp fall in the cost of installing and generating renewable power is driving the shift to low carbon technologies, says Taylor Jordan of Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
Actis: No need to compromise on financial performance in impact
Financial returns and positive social and environmental outcomes are mutually reinforcing if investors take a well-considered and targeted approach, says Shami Nissan, head of responsible investment at Actis.
A-Z of Impact Investing: F-J
The second part of our A-Z looks at financial return, global vision, healthcare, inclusive finance and job creation.
A-Z of Impact Investing: K-M
The third part of our A-Z looks at kids and the future generation, low-cost housing and metrics.
CDC on how creating jobs relieves poverty
As private sources of capital warm to the idea of impact investing, there is much they can learn from DFIs, say Clarisa De Franco and Yasemin Saltuk Lamy of the UK’s CDC Group, which has been deploying capital for positive outcomes for over 70 years
KPMG: Why metrics matter for impact investors
Tania Carnegie, leader of the Impact Venture practice at KPMG, on the power of positive impact measurement to drive opportunity.
A-Z of Impact Investing: N-Q
In the fourth part of our A-Z we look at nutrition, oceans and clean water, public-private partnerships and quality outcomes.
A-Z of Impact Investing: R-U
The fifth part of our A-Z looks at renovation, scale, the ticking clock of global warming and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Paul Hastings on delivering on the promise of impact
Paul Hastings’ Vadim Avdeychik and Runjhun Kudaisya on the questions LPs should be asking to ensure quality impact outcomes.
Nuveen’s guide to scaling with integrity
As the popularity of impact investing grows exponentially, maintaining standards is key, says Nuveen’s Rekha Unnithan.
A-Z of Impact Investing: V-Z
The sixth and final part of our A-Z looks at vulnerable communities, women's empowerment, X-ray vision, younger generations and the move towards zero waste.
Click here to access Private Equity International’s in-depth special reports covering a wide array of topics, plus our digital magazines.
