Trends in Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact Investing

Welcome to GreenMoney’s January 2019 issue featuring the recently released “Report on US Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact Investing Trends”. Spend some time with these articles, based on the US SIF report, covering the multiple aspects of where the SRI industry has been and where it is headed. The numbers in the Trends Report are positive, as more investors, institutions and financial professionals understand that SRI is good for themselves, their clients, and all of us. The headline here:  38 percent growth in assets using SRI over the last two years, totaling $12 trillion; one in every 4 dollars under professional management.  

The issue includes a variety articles and a special video, here are some excerpts:

• Reflections on SRI Investing in 2018  by Lisa Woll, CEO, US SIF and US SIF Foundation

Sustainable and impact investing in the US continues to grow and to make a difference. Investors now consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors across $12 trillion of professionally managed assets, a 38 percent increase since 2016. Financial firms and institutional investors are addressing a diverse set of ESG concerns across a broader span of assets than ever. Many of these money managers and institutions, concerned about racial and gender discrimination, gun violence and environmental protection, are using portfolio selection and shareowner engagement to address these important issues.

• SRI Trends Report 2018: Executive Summary

SRI Investing in the US continues to expand at a healthy pace. The total US-domiciled assets under management using SRI strategies grew from $8.7 trillion at the start of 2016 to $12.0 trillion at the start of 2018, an increase of 38 percent. This represents 26 percent —or 1 in 4 dollars— of the $46.6 trillion in total US assets under professional management. Since 1995, when the US SIF Foundation first measured the size of the US sustainable and responsible investment universe at $639 billion, these assets have increased more than 18-fold, a compound annual growth rate of 13.6 percent.

• SRI Trends Report 2018: Community Investing

Community Investing is a vital form of SRI Investing that the US SIF Foundation has tracked for 20 years. The community investing sector has experienced rapid growth over the last decade, nearly doubling in assets between 2014 and 2016, and growing more than 50 percent from 2016 to 2018. In the US, community investing institutions direct capital to communities and individuals underserved by conventional financial services. They provide capital for small businesses, affordable housing units, charter schools, grocery stores as well as responsible lending products and related programs.

Also a unique Featured Video is included in the issue - World's First Green Bond: The 10 Year Anniversary

10 years ago, The World Bank issued the first-ever green bond then laid out the first blueprint for sustainable fixed income investing, transforming development finance and sparking a sustainability revolution in the capital markets. Green bonds have become a strategic priority for The World Bank as they support all Sustainable Development Goals. Watch this video to learn about the investors, evaluator, and Treasury behind the first green bond and how it turned into a $12 billion World Bank program 10 years later.

Find all of this and more in the January 19 issue of the award-winning GreenMoney at- https://greenmoneyjournal.com 

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