BlackRock recently announced it will require its portfolio companies to make climate-related risk disclosures, while Goldman Sachs said it will refuse to take companies public if they have all-male boards. And the CEO of Bank of America, which manages $3trn (£2.2trn) in investor assets, has said “all investors are impact investors now”.
See also: – Putting ‘stupid money’ to good causes
These actions reflect the zeitgeist: the global impact investment market is booming. In 2019, it was worth more than $50bn, with more than $20bn invested in ESG mutual funds and ETFs alone, a four-fold jump from 2018. These funds are managed by more than 1,340 organisations worldwide.
It is evident that, around the world, businesses, institutional investors, wealth managers and retail investors are moving to align their capital with their values.
Read the full comment in ESG Clarity’s January digital magazine.
