Capital Impact Partners Named to ImpactAssets Ninth Annual IA 50 Impact Investment Fund Manager Showcase

Industry’s first publicly available, searchable resource of impact investing fund managers sees record number of applicants and assets; New emerging impact manager category brings awareness of innovative trailblazers breaking new ground in impact investing

BETHESDA, Md. (February 25)—For the third consecutive year, ImpactAssets named Capital Impact Partners to its ImpactAssets 50 (IA 50), a publicly available, online database for impact investors, family offices, financial advisors, and institutional investors that features a diversified listing of private capital fund managers that deliver social and environmental impact as well as financial returns.

Capital Impact, a leading mission-driven Community Development Financial Institution, began offering its Capital Impact Investment Notes in 2017, which allow retail and institutional investors the opportunity to invest in the organization’s nationwide efforts to create social impact for disinvested communities. Available for as low as $1,000, individual and institutional investors can purchase Notes through their brokerage accounts and earn a financial, as well as a social, return on their investments. In 2019, Capital Impact released a new $150 million offering of its S&P “A” rated Notes to investors.

“Capital Impact Partners’ work to build equitable communities and places of opportunity is something that community members and investors alike can be involved in. We believe that is how change is made. To be recognized by ImpactAssets as an organization that is continually advancing this work is an honor. It is encouraging to see community development organizations being steadily integrated into the broader impact investing movement,” said Natalie Gunn, chief financial officer and chief administrative officer for Capital Impact Partners.

Capital Impact will use proceeds from the Capital Impact Investment Notes primarily to support projects focused in the health care, education, affordable housing, and community development sectors in underserved communities nationwide. These efforts are part of Capital Impact’s work to foster good health, job creation, and economic development. Examples of Capital Impact’s work can be seen in this video featuring one of our investors.

The Notes are available at fixed interest rates with maturities that range from 1-10 years through Incapital LLC, a leading underwriter and distributor of securities. The Prospectus, Pricing Supplements and information about how to invest are available to the public on Capital Impact’s website and to financial professionals through Incapital’s Legacy™ platform, which offers products to investors that align financial goals with personal principles through values-based investing.

“With record applicants and assets under management, the IA 50 continues to reflect the rapid growth and interest in impact investing,” said Jed Emerson, ImpactAssets Senior Fellow, and IA 50 Review Committee Chair. “This year’s showcase includes eleven impact funds with more than $1 billion in assets under management. And to ensure we’re capturing the best future ideas, we’ve added emerging impact managers, who have the hunger, creativity, and a willingness to explore alternatives that more seasoned fund managers may not.”

The IA 50 2020 saw a record number of private debt and equity fund manager applications. Managers who met the IA 50’s in-depth review criteria manage an estimated $39.8 billion in assets devoted to creating measurable, positive impact, up from $26.9 billion in 2019. Emerging impact managers direct nearly $400 million into cutting-edge strategies and high impact investments.

This year’s showcase includes:

Investment Targets and UN Sustainable Development Goals: A total of 83 percent of managers targeted investment in people or places that are under threat or lack access to resources and opportunity, while 64 percent focused on underdeveloped markets where the market is relatively new, emerging, or subject to systemic challenges. Top UN SDG categories that fund managers focused on included 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth (68%); 1 – No Poverty (63%) and 10 – Reduced Inequalities (58%).

Diversity and Inclusion: While Wall Street continues to struggle with building diverse teams, 85 percent of IA 50 fund managers report that 25 percent or more of their investment professionals are women and/or from under-represented groups, while half have teams with 50 percent or more women and other under-represented groups. In addition, 75 percent of firms have 25 percent or more of their management teams that are women or from under-represented groups.

Impact and Financial Return: Impact fund managers remained focused on delivering both positive impact and investment performance, with 78 percent targeting market rates or above market rates of return. A total of 97 percent of impact fund managers delivered either in line or above their initial target returns.

In addition to Emerson and Sze, the IA 50 Review Committee is comprised of an expanded group of 14 impact investment experts and leaders, including Lauren Booker Allen, Vice President, Jordan Park Group Impact Advisory; Mark Berryman, Managing Director of Impact Investing, The CAPROCK Group; Ronald A. Homer, Chief Strategist, Impact Investing, RBC Global Asset Management (US) Inc.; Karl “Charly” Kleissner, Ph.D., Co-Founder of Toniic and KL Felicitas Foundation; Kathy Leonard, Senior Vice President, Investments and Senior Portfolio Manager, UBS; Malaika Maphalala, CPWA® Private Wealth Advisor, Natural Investments, LLC; Cynthia Muller, Director of Mission Investment, W.K. Kellogg Foundation; Stephanie Cohn Rupp, Managing Director and Partner, Tiedemann Wealth Management; Fran Seegull, Executive Director, U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, Ford Foundation; Liesel Pritzker Simmons and Ian Simmons, Co-Founders of Blue Haven Initiative; and Margret Trilli, President and CIO, ImpactAssets.

Sandra Osborne-Kartt, CFA, Director, Investments, ImpactAssets and Jennifer Kenning, CEO and Co-Founder of Align Impact and IA 50 Senior Investment Advisor, led the ImpactAssets and Align Impact Investment teams in the application scoring and analysis process.

“The IA 50 is a proven and trusted way for investors to start exploring a subset of managers that are already working in this area and determining what interesting impact investments an investor can make today,” said Sandra Osborne-Kartt, CFA, Director, Investments, ImpactAssets. “We are excited by growing investor appetite as well as the diverse array of impact themes and strategies represented by this year’s list.”

About Capital Impact Partners

Through capital and commitment, Capital Impact Partners helps people build communities of opportunity that break barriers to success. We deliver mission-driven financing, incubate social innovation programs, and provide capacity building to help ensure that individuals with low-to-moderate incomes have access to quality health care and education, healthy foods, affordable housing, and the ability to age with dignity. A nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution, Capital Impact Partners has disbursed more than $2.7 billion to champion social and economic justice for communities since 1982. Our leadership in delivering financial and social impact has resulted in Capital Impact being rated by S&P Global and recognized by Aeris for our performance. Headquartered in Arlington, VA, Capital Impact Partners operates nationally, with local offices in Detroit, MI, New York, NY, and Oakland, CA. Learn more at www.capitalimpact.org.

About the ImpactAssets 50

The IA 50 is the first publicly available database that provides a gateway into the world of impact investing for investors and their financial advisors, offering an easy way to identify experienced impact investment firms and explore the landscape of potential investment options. The IA 50 is intended to illustrate the breadth of impact investment fund managers operating today, though it is not a comprehensive list. Firms have been selected to demonstrate a wide range of impact investing activities across geographies, sectors and asset classes.

The IA 50 is not an index or investable platform and does not constitute an offering or recommend specific products. It is not a replacement for due diligence. In order to be considered for the IA 50 2020, fund managers needed to have at least $25 million in assets under management, more than 3 years of experience as a firm with impact investing, documented social and/or environmental impact and be available for US investment. Additional details on the selection process are here.

The IA 50 Emerging Impact Manager list is intended to spotlight newer fund managers that may demonstrate future potential to create meaningful impact. Criteria such as minimum track record or minimum assets under management may not be applicable.

About ImpactAssets

ImpactAssets is a nonprofit financial services firm that increases the flow of capital into investments delivering financial, social and environmental returns. ImpactAssets’ $1.1 billion Donor Advised Fund and field-building initiatives enable philanthropists, other asset owners and their wealth advisors to advance social or environmental change through impact investment and philanthropy.