Sustainability – Corporate Social Responsibility – Socially Responsible Investments – Corporate Citizenship – Philanthropy – Impact Investing: buzzwords that are on everyone’s lips and have become buzzwords in recent years. But what is impact investing and what can impact investing do? We try to clarify this:
Sustainable action has been an issue in all areas of life for several years. Even in the activities of companies and in financial investments, action is increasingly demanded or expected at all levels that has an impact on society beyond the immediately discernible purpose.
Investments are traditionally valued according to risk and return. In addition, impact investing involves a third level: the impact, i.e. the added value that an investment creates for a society (on a social or ecological level). Impact investors therefore seek investment opportunities that are both financially attractive and make sense.
Such investment opportunities exist primarily in the areas of agriculture, financial services, energy, education and health. The added value created by these solutions results from improved access to markets, better availability of products or energy, pollution prevention, better opportunities, higher life expectancy or simply higher prosperity.
Impact investing is therefore not just philanthropy. Impact investing always supports market solutions, i.e. concepts that are based on a business case for all good causes.
In essence, an impact investor does little differently than an entrepreneur who runs his business with a long-term orientation – for the benefit of his family, his employees, his customers, his environment: he supports and promotes entrepreneurial solutions to problems. We are therefore convinced that independent, entrepreneurial action can create added value for society everywhere.
Around 500 billion euros were invested in impact investing projects worldwide in 2018, with a strong upward trend. And demand continues to rise; both from private and institutional investors. Investing capital assets without a deeper purpose could be impossible in a few years. If you would like to fill your financial assets with meaning right now, please contact us.
