Conference Presentation, Panel, Webinar
The Impact Revolution - Conference Call Series
- Future calls will prioritize long-term capital access for minority-owned businesses, emerging U.S. markets, and global frontier markets over a 100-year span from mid-20th to mid-21st century.
- Financial technology is expected to accelerate growth by mobilizing human, social, natural, and real assets, with the ESG market doubling annually to reach $715 billion, representing 15% of global investable capital.
- Research indicates 90% of 2,200 financial economics findings show non-negative return impacts, with 60% showing positive results, supporting the view that impact investing can drive both returns and social outcomes.
- Technology and data enable precise measurement of corporate impacts on people and the environment, with the Harvard Business School's Impact Weighted Accounts Initiative currently publishing environmental costs for 1,800 companies, with product impact analysis scheduled for next year.
- Specific environmental damage costs identified include $39 billion annually for ExxonMobil, $23 billion for Shell, and $13 billion for BP, while positive employment impacts from companies like Intel can reduce demographic impact figures.
- Post-pandemic investment flows mirror the 1929 era with $30 trillion allocated to ESG investing and $700 billion to impact investing, totaling over $30 trillion or 15% of investable assets globally.
- A proposal suggests mandating impact-weighted account publication for companies starting two years from now to center impact alongside profit in the economic system.
- Demographic shifts project people of color in the U.S. will comprise over half the population by 2050, driving anticipation of $70 trillion in additional economic activity through a deeper racial equity lens.
- The foundation allocated $100 million from its endowment to impact investing 13 years ago, with the Mission Driven Investments Program currently holding $150 million in outstanding investments at below or market rates.
- Citi has mobilized $4 billion for over 150 inclusive finance clients since 2008, including $6 billion in affordable housing loans in the U.S. in 2019 across nearly 200 cities, and has executed almost $3 billion in transactions with the DFC since 2008 supporting 40+ projects.
- Specific Citi financing includes a $100 million multi-sector loan guarantee facility, $5 million in Kenya for Dlight's solar solutions, $5 million in India for INI Farm Expansion to increase revenue by 20%, and recent deals for sub-Saharan African health equipment.
- Global market potential is estimated at 21 trillion in public markets and 5 trillion in private markets, totaling 26 to 32 trillion, with blended finance structures identified as critical due to diminishing sovereign fiscal capacity and a lack of public-sector political will.
- About 50 central banks and regulators have joined the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) to bring sustainability to their reserves, though a lack of scaled funding and public money remains a significant constraint.
- Government regulation and taxation of polluting or socially unacceptable companies are becoming increasingly likely, aligning with shifting investor and consumer preferences for companies sharing shared values.
- A follow-up discussion on investing for impact in emerging and frontier markets is scheduled for August 11 involving partners from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the International Cooperation Agency, Mashav, in Israel.