Positive outcomes

The term ‘impact investing’ was first coined in 2007, although the practice developed over years beforehand. It seeks to generate both social change and a return on capital and ends the old dichotomy where business was seen solely as a way to make a profit, while social progress was better achieved only through philanthropy or public policy.

Not a recent phenomenon

Socially responsible investing is not a recent phenomenon – it can actually be traced back several centuries. Early initiatives were all based on the exclusion of controversial sectors such as tobacco or armaments rather than on investing in businesses which have the power to do good. That’s what impact investing is seeking to achieve, and it has begun to gain traction.

The upward swing of impact investing is being led by millennials. This type of investing considers a company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR), or the sense of duty to positively serve society as a whole, before becoming i