What is the ‘impact’ in impact investing? Is it only for start-ups? How can investors and businesses get involved?
Hear from Dawn Chan, CEO, Centre of Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP), as she explains what impact investing is all about, and elaborates on the opportunities awaiting investors and businesses in Asia, in the video above.
The following excerpts have been condensed and edited for clarity:
00:16 - Introducing impact investing
“When we refer to ‘impact’, it talks about the intention to make a positive environmental and/or social change, and to create a solution. This happens alongside making a financial return - it’s not charity or philanthropy, but contributing to solutions towards the SDGs in order to make a return.”
00:48 - Why impact investing is not only for start-ups
“Start-ups are most in the spotlight because they start from a clean sheet. Entrepreneurs can start with a very clear intention from the get-go, from day one, that they want to address a particular problem - whether it’s education or waste management - and they can do so from a clean slate. But it's not just for start-ups - we’ve also seen large companies embark on their own impact journey.”
01:35 - Challenges for impact investing in Asia
For investors: “There's a little bit of confusion around the whole idea of impact investing and how it fits in among various topics and classifications, as well as the confusion sometimes around philanthropy.”
For companies: “Companies need to understand that it’s not sufficient to say, ‘I identify myself as an impact company’. They need to very diligently monitor and measure the positive and negative impact that the company is making - whether it’s intended or unintended - and make it public.”
02:47 - How else does impact practices affect companies?
“As a company, having a stated purpose and not thinking about profit at the expense of people or the planet helps in the attraction and retention of talent, and that affects the bottom line.”
03:25 - Impact opportunities in Asia, for businesses and investors
“Asia is home to 60% or more of the world’s population, and as we reported in our Accenture and SMU report, the level of digitalisation is at around 75%. This is higher than the world’s average of 60% and that means there’s opportunity to create impact at scale.”
04:22 - How a purpose-driven company benefits society
“It's not just environmental issues, but also the social good and social impact that impact investing addresses. This would include areas like education and healthcare – major areas of opportunity that we see in Asia, and which are highlighted in the SDG Investor Maps.”
05:29 - How CIIP helps investors and companies achieve impact
“CIIP will be adopting a multi-pronged approach to building the impact ecosystem. The first is building an extensive body of knowledge on impact investing; the second, convening the community and the third is catalysing collective action.”
Visit CIIP’s website to find out more about impact investing and practices, and access practical tools and resources to inspire your own impact journey. Follow CIIP on LinkedIn for its latest updates.
