RM Funds, a specialist asset manager focusing on alternative investments, is to launch the new RM Impact Credit Fund (RM ICF).

Asset managers’ understanding of companies’ ESG practices could be improved by using new technologies such as artificial intelligence, tokenisation, and ledger technology, according to a report from consultancy Capco.

Tikehau Capital has completed the first closing of its investment platform focused on impact lending, raising cEUR100 million from the European Investment Fund, backed by the Investment Plan for Europe, an anchor investor alongside other key institutional investors.

Impax Asset Management (Impax), a specialist asset manager investing in the transition to a more sustainable global economy, has been awarded a CAD106 million sub-advisory mandate to manage the newly launched FÉRIQUE Global Sustainable Development Equity Fund.

Alquity is launching its first Global Impact Fund – a next generation product which is both global in scope and re-enforces the bridge the company has developed linking listed equities and impact.

Public companies have a significant role to play in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). There is a growing realisation that their enormous firepower and resources will be a critical driving force to reaching many of the goals, boosted by investment and engagement by asset management firms and large institutional investors.

Detailing the impact of the revenues generated by every single portfolio company is intricate and labour intensive. However, this process supports a long-term investment horizon, promotes intimate company knowledge on behalf of portfolio managers and also encourages greater engagement with companies.

In order to truly get under the skin of impact investing, asset managers cannot simply rely on third party ratings or even regulatory disclosures. Impact investment strategies, which aim to generate competitive financial returns alongside positive environmental or social impact, require combining quantitative data with in-depth qualitative analysis. Although third-party ESG or sustainability data and company disclosures can provide a helpful starting point, it is necessary for asset managers to conduct their own proprietary assessment to truly understand the activities driving a company’s business and the impact said activities have on society and the environment. 

By A Paris – Institutional asset managers are on a journey to improve the impact their own business has on the world. As investor demands related to the impact of their investments increases, managers focused on providing robust impact information to clients are themselves becoming more introspective and making efforts to strengthen their own operations in terms of these factors as well.

Damien Dwin, a Black American businessman, philanthropist and veteran investor, has launched Lafayette Square Holding Company (Lafayette Square), an impact-driven, minority owned investment platform.