Weekly Impact Investment Market Update: February 23, 2018

Impact Investing & ESG
 

Institutional ESG Investing Can Bring Tough Reporting Questions

Highlights from a new Natixis survey suggest reporting challenges continue to rank as top hurdle for institutions implementing ESG programs; this includes the concern that public companies may be “greenwashing” reported data to enhance their public image.

Impact Investors Seek to Expand Market

Impact investing has accelerated rapidly in the last several years as more investors—both big institutional firms as well as wealthy families—seek to put capital into enterprises that make a difference for people and the planet while still generating a financial return.

‘Green’ Investing Helps Shield Investors from Correction

Investing in ‘green’ funds benefits more than just the environment; this type of investing can also be healthy for investors’ bottom line, recent data says.

Institutional Investors Were Prepared for Market Volatility

While the market volatility may be surprising to some, institutional investors have been diligently diversifying their portfolios in anticipation of its return, Natixis Investment Managers found in a survey of 500 institutional investors around the world.

Every CFO Should Know This: ‘The Future of Banking’ Ties Verified ESG Performance to Cheaper Capital

This may be the first time a company’s cost of capital is explicitly tied to its third-party-verified ESG performance.

ESG Climbs Limited Partners’ Due Diligence Agenda

“The importance being attached to ESG is being driven by changing attitudes among a number of stakeholders.”

Japan Urged to Tap Dormant Bank Accounts to Promote ‘Impact Investment’

Japan should tap unclaimed money from dormant bank accounts to promote investment for social good, Ronald Cohen, capitalist who chairs the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment.

 

United States & Europe
 

US Economy: The Growth Puzzle

After several years of weak demand and low inflation, investment is rising. But an increase in long-term growth requires a big jump in productivity.

U.K. Wages Pick Up as Fewer Eastern Europe Workers Fill Jobs

U.K. pay is picking up after employment among citizens of the eastern countries that joined the European Union more than a decade ago fell for the first time since 2009.

 

Developing Economies
 

Time to Reform the Multilateral Development Bank System

The Multilateral Development Bank System is uniquely placed to play a central role in realizing the ambitions of the new global agenda.

First Bank Nigeria Sees Faster Growth Buoying More Lending

Nigeria’s biggest bank by revenue expects lending to accelerate and bad debts to drop this year as growth in Africa’s largest economy picks up.

Asia Debt Binge to Dampen Growth but Not Derail It, Oxford Says

Asia’s soaring levels of debt will weigh on growth over the next decade – especially in China, Malaysia, Thailand and India – but it won’t be enough to derail the region’s economy.

Indonesia Set to Join Green Bond Club

Indonesia, the world’s biggest exporter of coal used to generate power, is set to become the first Asian country to sell green bonds, underlining the tension in the nascent but fast-growing market.

Singapore Budget 2018: Gearing Economy Up for Greater Emphasis on Asia. New Tech, Ageing Population

Amid Singapore’s strong position riding on a global upturn last year, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat outlined in his Budget speech on Feb. 19 three major shifts in the coming decade: a greater economic emphasis on Asia, the emergence of new technologies and an ageing population.

Is Argentina the New Darling of Emerging Markets?

Is Argentina the new darling of emerging markets? Or is this Carlos Menem 2.0? Investors know how that ended.