Investing with Impact Update!

Whether you call it ‘profit with purpose’ or ‘happy
returns’, impact investing has received quite some press recently as an
emerging new asset class. J.P.Morgan in late 2010 published a report in which
the firm was very bullish about impact investing, predicting that by 2020
between $400 billion and $1 trillion would be invested this way. But what
really is impact investing? As The Economist put it in a recent article: “Five
years ago anyone wanting explicitly to combine financial returns with virtue
was limited to investing in social housing for poorer people in rich countries,
microcredit and a handful of ethical mutual funds that shun sinful shares such
as tobacco and defense companies.” Today, not only the number, but also the
range of impact investors has grown and so has the variety of investments they
make.

Our panel will not only consider how we can define and
better understand this trend, but also address the opportunities and practical
challenges around impact investing today. Elizabeth Glenshaw, portfolio manager
and managing director of Clean Yield Asset Management, and Shuaib Siddiqui,
portfolio manager at the Acumen Fund, together with our moderator Professor
John Vogel, bring diverse experiences and perspectives to the topic. A key
challenge is how to develop better metrics to measure performance, and we will
hear first-hand examples at how firms like the Acumen Fund try to measure and
‘monetize’ social impact. And we will ask some thought-provoking questions such
as whether traditional venture capital structures and mandates need to change
for us to really start making an impact.

It’s great to see so much interest in linking investment
choices with better social and environmental outcomes, but is it really
possible to move away from the profit imperative we hear so much about at
business school? With impact investing becoming such a hot topic, this panel is
a must-attend for any Tuck student interested in finance, investing, banking or
private equity.

We look forward to seeing you on Thursday at 3:30pm in
Frantz II!

For in-depth background reading, see the 2010 J.P.Morgan
report on impact investment here.

For a quick update on recent developments, see this
Economist article here.

Submit your questions here.