Sustainable Finance and Impact Investing: A Guide for Sustainable Entrepreneurs

Sustainable finance is a long-term approach to finance and investing, emphasizing long-term thinking, decision-making and value creation that considers environmental, social and governance ("ESG") issues. Sustainable finance has emerged in parallel to aggressive policy initiatives such as the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris climate agreement of 2015 as it has become clear that they cannot be realistically undertaken and completed without innovative private sector financing models that allow a wide range of potential investors to participate in high growth, albeit risky and uncertain, opportunities. This book introduces sustainable investment strategies, the market for sustainable investment, issues for banks and other commercial financing institutions, "blended finance" and the various types of sustainable bonds. In addition, this book provides an in-depth look into one of those strategies, impact investing, which is notable among the other strategies for not only considering ESG but also intentionally seeking positive change (i.e., social and/or environmental impact) through the selection and management of investees including entrepreneurs launching businesses with a clear social or environmental purpose. The book explores definitions and core principles of impact investing including the emerging impact investing ecosystem and continues with analysis of impact investment tools and structures, principles for organizing for impact, impact measurement and management and impact reporting.