Featured: Institutional Impact
How do you solve a problem like MBS? Saudi Arabia presents a governance risk impact investors can’t ignore. “For investors who assess countries, along with companies for environmental, social and governance, or ESG, factors, Saudi Arabia has long gotten a red flag for ‘G,’” writes Imogen Rose-Smith in her latest Institutional Impact column on ImpactAlpha. In 2017, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, widely known as MBS, swooped in as a modernizing influence with a promise of economic transformation and social change. Then, Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi walked into Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul to secure paperwork he needed to marry his fiancee. She never saw him again. This February, the U.S. Office for the Director of National Intelligence declassified its report on the 2018 assassination, which found that MBS’s “absolute control” of security and intelligence make it “highly unlikely” Saudi officials would have tortured and killed Khashoggi without the authorization of the crown prince.
Dealflow: Follow the Money
Mitsubishi and South Pole partner to finance carbon-removal tech. Carbon removal technology that captures CO2 from the air, coupled with permanent storage, will be key to decarbonization efforts, according to South Pole. The Swiss climate project developer aims to procure at least $800 million worth of carbon removal credits by 2030 in a facility backed by Mitsubishi Corp. With current carbon removal technology costs ranging from $50 to over $400 a ton, the Next Generation Carbon Removal Purchase Facility “will provide a secure revenue stream for new carbon removal technologies to accelerate their development,” said South Pole’s Patrick Burgi, adding that the facility will “help drive down the price per ton of CO2 removed over time."
Signals: Ahead of the Curve
Campbell promotes “circularity” yet continues to supply single-use packaging. Food packaging creates 680 million tons of global greenhouse gas emissions. Pressured by consumers and regulators, fast-moving consumer goods firms are changing their packaging strategy. Camden, N.J.-based Campbell Soup Company has set goals for “sustainable packaging to promote circularity” through supply, disposal and recycling processes. An analysis by Swiss impact ratings firm Impaakt, however, found Campbell used more than 400,000 tons of packaging in 2020, including nearly 40,000 tons of non-recyclable packaging.
Agents of Impact: Follow the Talent
Greg Jones, ex- of CVC Capital Partners, joins LeapFrog Investments as head of investor relations. Alice Maltby, ex- of Apax Partners, joins LeapFrog as an investor relations officer… Amma Sefa-Dedeh of Stanbic Investment Management Services is named CEO of Impact Investing Ghana, the GSG's Ghanian National Advisory Board… Teree Henderson, ex- of Partnership for Public Service, joins SoLa Impact as director of social impact (see, “Agent of Impact: Martin Muoto”)… Judy McElroy of Fractal Energy Storage Consultants joins the board of directors at Community Energy.
Editor's Picks
Podcasts | May 7, 2021
Impact Briefing: Week of May 7th
David Bank joins host Monique Aiken to talk about generational inheritance, politics, history and leadership.
INHS Asvini staff pay tribute to all those involved in the fight against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Mumbai, India | Photo credit: Manoej Paateel
Agents of Impact | May 7, 2021
India’s citizen-responders
ImpactAlpha, May 7 – The desperate citizen response to India’s COVID catastrophe is a poor substitute for the full-scale mobilization that might have been …
Lake Street in Minneapolis, MN | Photo credit: Sam Wagner
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – The conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd sent a signal to residents of Minneapolis …
Top Stories
How do you solve a problem like MBS? Saudi Arabia presents a governance risk impact investors can’t ignore
Institutional Impact | May 10, 2021
Campbell “promotes circularity” yet continues to supply single-use packaging
ESG | May 10, 2021
Einride secures $110 million to expand electric freight transit in the U.S. and Europe
Clean Energy | May 10, 2021
Mitsubishi and South Pole partner to finance carbon-removal tech
Climate and Clean Tech | May 10, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
RSF Social Finance deploys capital from the Racial Justice Collaborative
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Conservation of mangrove forests could get a boost from carbon credits
2030 Finance | May 6, 2021
MIT’s Solve Innovation Future fund makes four early-stage investments
Agrifood Tech | May 6, 2021
EnCap Investments raises $1.2 billion energy transition fund
Climate and Clean Tech | May 5, 2021
Three ways to invest in the upskilling of workers for the post-COVID economy
Good Jobs | May 5, 2021
Mexico’s Graviti raises $2.5 million to help unbanked Latin Americans pay for appliances
Dealflow | May 5, 2021
The Reconstruction
Lake Street in Minneapolis, MN | Photo credit: Sam Wagner
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – The conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd sent a signal to residents of Minneapolis …
Carmen Rojas of The Marguerite Casey Foundation | Photo credit: The Nonprofit Times
Impact Voices | May 4, 2021
100 Days of President Biden: Progress and peril on the road to a just economy
As the Biden administration completes its first 100 days, I am both surprised by the ambition of this administration and disappointed by its …
Kelli Saulny of Camelback Ventures
The Reconstruction | May 3, 2021
The Reconstruction: Accelerating Black entrepreneurship to build wealth across generations
ImpactAlpha, May 3, 2021 – Inheritance is not only about the wealth we pass down from grandparents to parents to children. It is …
The Collective's Sandra Dungee Glenn, Steven Sanders and Tayyib Smith
The Reconstruction | April 27, 2021
How a collective of Black developers is raising equity for inclusive real estate in Philadelphia
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 27 – Decades of failed policies and extractive investments have left Black neighborhoods in Philadelphia with undervalued housing, underfunded services and a …
Photo credit: ExecOnline
Dealflow | April 22, 2021
ExecOnline raises $45 million to diversify corporate leadership
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 22 – Less than 1% of Fortune 500 CEOs are Black. Less than 10% are women. ExecOnline partners with business schools to …
Boston Ujima Project | Photo credit: Boston Ujima Project
Impact Voices | April 20, 2021
Centering community voices and power in investment processes
The increased investor attention to racism and the inequality laid bare by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis has intersected, at long last, with the …
Photo credit: AdvancedAg, an Indigenous-owned water and agtech company in Alberta
Canada | April 20, 2021
Indigenous Growth Fund raises $150 million to back Native lenders in Canada
ImpactAlpha, April 20 – A new fund in Canada is aiming to impact marginalized Indigenous communities by channelling capital to Indigenous-owned financial institutions. The …
Community Finance | April 20, 2021
Reviving a Black cultural corridor in West Oakland – as a community-led cooperative
In another era, Esther’s Orbit Room helped make West Oakland the “Harlem of the West,” hosting the likes of B.B. King, James Brown …
Rey Ramsey of The Nathan Cummings Foundation | Photo credit: The Org
Podcasts | April 19, 2021
The Reconstruction: Rey Ramsey on deploying 100% of foundation assets toward positive impact and racial equity
ImpactAlpha, April 19 — The case for breaking down philanthropy’s historical divide between the investment side of the house and a foundation’s mission …
National Memorial for Peace and Justice, Montgomery, AL | Photo credit: DiAnna Paulk
Impact Voices | April 15, 2021
Grounding investors in history to ensure this Reconstruction delivers on its promise
For us at Illumen Capital, the echoes of history are never far from the work at hand. We know we can only begin …
Tiffany Manuel of TheCaseMade | Photo: Tiffany Manuel
Podcasts | April 12, 2021
The Reconstruction: Seeing the world of our children’s children to help make the case for justice
ImpactAlpha, April 12 – Tiffany Manuel’s handbooks for social change warn about messaging “backfires.” These days, she’s wielding such tools to overcome backlash. …
Kathryn Finney of Genius Guild | Photo credit: kathrynfinney.com
Agents of Impact | April 9, 2021
Kathryn Finney, Genius Guild
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 9 – The entrepreneur and investor’s answer to systemic economic exclusion of Black, Indigenous and other people of color: Build an ecosystem …
Climate Finance
Photo credit: Techcouver.
Climate and Clean Tech | May 10, 2021
Mitsubishi and South Pole partner to finance carbon-removal tech
ImpactAlpha, May 10 — Carbon removal technology that captures CO2 from the air, coupled with permanent storage, will be key to decarbonization efforts, …
Photo credit: Einride.
Clean Energy | May 10, 2021
Einride secures $110 million to expand electric freight transit in the U.S. and Europe
ImpactAlpha, May 10 — Einride integrates electric and autonomous vehicles to move commercial products. The Swedish company’s Einride Pod is a fully-electric driverless …
2030 Finance | May 6, 2021
Conservation of mangrove forests could get a boost from carbon credits
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – Farmers in Iowa and Illinois are getting $20 a ton for sequestering soil carbon. Tropical forests can collect $10 a …
Climate and Clean Tech | May 5, 2021
EnCap Investments raises $1.2 billion energy transition fund
ImpactAlpha, May 5 – Houston-based oil and gas private equity firm EnCap Investments has raised 22 institutional investment funds totaling roughly $38 billion …
Photo credit: Solidia Technologies.
Clean Energy | May 4, 2021
Breakthrough Energy Ventures backs three climate-tech startups
ImpactAlpha, May 4 — Breakthrough Energy Ventures collected another $1 billion at the start of this year to invest in up to 50 …
Photo credit: Solid Power
Clean Energy | May 4, 2021
Solid Power secures $130 million to scale EV battery production
ImpactAlpha, May 4 — Louisville, Colorado-based Solid Power develops solid-state batteries for electric vehicles that it says are cheaper, more efficient and safer …
2030 Finance | April 29, 2021
Paris-based Tikehau Capital launches private equity decarbonization fund for North America
ImpactAlpha, April 29 – Tikehau Capital has raised $300 million for its first North America-focused fund to invest in businesses supporting the transition to …
Photo credit: PosiGen
Clean Energy | April 29, 2021
PosiGen scores $27 million to bring low-cost solar energy to American households
ImpactAlpha, April 29 — New Orleans-based PosiGen is aiming to make solar energy accessible through low-cost rooftop solar panel leasing and energy efficiency …
Increase in global CO2 emissions
Climate Finance | April 28, 2021
That feeling when investors realize carbon is going to $100 a ton sooner than they expected
ImpactAlpha, April 28 – Carbon hasn’t attracted as much attention as GameStop or Bitcoin, but the price of a ton of CO2 topped …
Conservation | April 28, 2021
Who’s going to pay? Due diligence in conservation finance starts with the offtake agreement
Venture capitalists in many sectors have developed robust due-diligence practices. The conservation finance community and its catalytic investors are still learning what works. …
Africa | April 28, 2021
Off-Grid Market Development Fund offers results-based financing for solar access in Madagascar
Off-Grid Market Development Fund is providing subsidies to a dozen companies to deliver solar power in Madagascar. Only 14% of Madagascar’s 25.7 million …
Clean Energy | April 27, 2021
Bloomberg and Goldman Sachs to seed clean energy investments in emerging markets
ImpactAlpha, April 27 – An “innovation fund,” backed by both Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies, will help emerging-market project developers identify financing “from …
Catalytic Capital
Lake Street in Minneapolis, MN | Photo credit: Sam Wagner
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
Helping communities acquire assets and rebuild small businesses in Minnesota
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – The conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd sent a signal to residents of Minneapolis …
Source: Higher Purpose Co.
Catalytic Capital | May 6, 2021
RSF Social Finance deploys capital from the Racial Justice Collaborative
ImpactAlpha, May 6 — RSF Social Finance has launched the Racial Justice Collaborative, a vehicle that aims to provide debt, equity and grant …
Photo credit: Algramo
Agrifood Tech | May 6, 2021
MIT’s Solve Innovation Future fund makes four early-stage investments
ImpactAlpha, May 6 – Solve Innovation Future, the investment arm of MIT Solve, has committed $1 million to eight companies that were finalists in …
Mason Music, a community-based music program at the newly renovated Woodlawn Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama | Photo credit: Mason Music
Catalytic Capital | April 29, 2021
Opportunity Alabama is combining community and capital to fulfill the potential of Opportunity Zones
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 29 – A senior-care facility in Heflin, Alabama, population 5,000. A restored hotel in Selma. Workforce housing and an historic theatre in …
Africa | April 28, 2021
Off-Grid Market Development Fund offers results-based financing for solar access in Madagascar
Off-Grid Market Development Fund is providing subsidies to a dozen companies to deliver solar power in Madagascar. Only 14% of Madagascar’s 25.7 million …
PC: Transport Topics.
Catalytic Capital | April 12, 2021
Social Finance raises $36 million for ‘career impact bonds’ and backs American Diesel Training
ImpactAlpha, April 12 — Career impact bonds are bringing income-share agreements, which dozens of universities are using to provide help to low-income students …
Catalytic Capital | April 6, 2021
How these wealthy families are driving outperformance on impact
ImpactAlpha, Apr. 6 – Investors willing and able to prioritize impact over financial returns were behind some of today’s highest-impact innovations. Catalytic investment strategies, …
Catalytic Capital | March 23, 2021
Rethinking economic development for an inclusive recovery
ImpactAlpha, March 23 – Policy makers are embracing bottom up strategies to address interlocking challenges if COVID-19, inequality and racial justice. The $1.9 …
Catalytic Capital | March 9, 2021
Impact investors turn to revenue-based financing to bridge capital gaps for founders of color
ImpactAlpha, Mar. 9 – As Kim Folsom likes to say, Founders First is majoring in the minors. Rather than produce a few tech unicorns …
Photo credit: SunFunder
Africa | March 8, 2021
SunFunder reaches $70 million close for Solar Energy Transformation Fund
ImpactAlpha, March 8 – SunFunder’s Solar Energy Transformation Fund backs solar companies improving energy access across Africa and Asia. The off-grid solar finance company’s …
Jigar Shah | Photo credit: Miljøstiftelsen ZERO/Flickr
Catalytic Capital | March 4, 2021
Generate’s Jigar Shah tapped to rev up the Department of Energy’s loan office
ImpactAlpha, March 4 – The lending program, mostly moribund for the past four years, “is back in business,” declared Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. …
Catalytic Capital | March 4, 2021
Greening sovereign debt to tackle converging crises
ImpactAlpha, Mar. 4 – A majority of low-income countries may need to restructure their loans or seek fresh ones in a brewing sovereign …
Agents of Impact
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