Impact Investing
Our focus on impact investing
Impact investing refers to investments made with the specific intent to contribute measurable positive social or environmental impact, alongside a financial return (adapted from GIIN and IFC definitions). Such investments can mobilize vast amounts of private capital for resolving societal issues.
Our research agenda in impact investing focuses on better understanding how asset owners and managers can help bring about an economy that serves people and the planet, addressing questions such as:
- How to define, delimit, and segment the impact investing market?
- What investor strategies and practices are effective in contributing to investee impact?
- How to compare the potential impact of different investment opportunities?
- How can impact investors integrate impact in their investment strategy and process?
- How do impact investors assess their contribution to impact?
Projects
Impact investing in Spain
The Esade Entrepreneurship Institute (of which ECSI was part) published in 2018 and 2019 a series of reports commissioned by Foro Impacto, the technical secretary of a working group promoting impact investing in Spain. These papers examined the Spanish impact investing sector and offered recommendations and guidance for the creation of a national advisory board on impact investing that would represent Spain in the Global Steering Group (GSG) for Impact Investment. Thanks to these efforts and the input provided by several actors through research and conversations, the advisory board was founded as SpainNAB and joined the GSG in 2019.
The Governance of Impact Measurement in European Impact Investing Funds
Impact investing funds have grown their assets under management and their capabilities in impact measurement and management (IMM) in recent years. However, there remains a lack of transparency and best practices for IMM governance. This report sheds light on this topic, addressing how European impact investing funds allocate responsibility for IMM, how impact is integrated in the investment process, and how impact data affects investment decisions and incentive structures.