Social Capital Markets Conference

Event Social Capital Markets Conference
Date 13-15 October
Venue San Francisco, USA Click here to read ...

Trustee's column: Why is MCI so hard for some foundations?

Sevdalina Rukanova’s article in the September issue of Alliance describes some of the problems foundations encounter in approaching mission connected investing – MCI. The idea of an investment that ‘targets a market rate of return and also helps a foundation achieve its mission’[1] makes unarguable good sense, so why don’t more foundations snap up this win-win opportunity? I think there are four issues here. Click here to read ...

More effort needed on the supply side

In a recent article for the Guardian,[1] I suggested that if observers were to ‘peer beyond the wreckage of western financial systems’, they could ‘discern the outlines of the future’. I also suggested that the end of the period of ‘global capital markets’ and the ‘financial services revolution’ would usher in a new era of social business and social investment. Click here to read ...

Investors’ perspectives: New opportunities for social investing

The precipitous fall in markets worldwide and fears of a global recession have created the most challenging economic situation in a generation. But as investors look closely at their portfolios, social investments can fill a niche that was previously unfilled. Click here to read ...

Effect looks at impacts of financial crisis on foundations

The forthcoming issue of Effect magazine presents a series of articles looking at the issue of investment from different angles. The relevance of this theme could not be greater at a time when many foundations are facing major challenges with regard to their financial planning and asset management strategies, as endowment values have been adversely affected by the recent turmoil in global financial markets.

Published by the European Foundation Centre, Effect also includes a regular section that examines the role and significance of foundations in different parts of the continent. This time the focus will be on the Nordic countries.

For more information
www.efc.be/effect Click here to read ...

Italian foundations launch own asset management company

Three Italian foundations have set up their own asset management company tailor-made in order to ‘build an investment platform which fully understands foundations’. Ninety per cent of what we do is for foundations, explains Luca Vaiani, Chairperson of Fondaco Lux. This means aligning the new company with foundations in terms of transparency, governance and fee structure and understanding exactly what they need. ‘Foundations are both our shareholders and our subscribers,’ says Vaiani. Click here to read ...

Investment Matters: In search of better charity asset management

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Subcontractors or visionaries?

One of the most important concepts in the development debate is trusteeship – the capacity of community leadership to make accountable choices, to reflect on these choices and make course corrections when necessary, and to maintain a focus on the goal of equity. The need for this kind of trusteeship is poorly understood by grant givers, and I believe its absence is a serious omission. For me, a fundamental question donors need to ask is this: do they want subcontractors to carry out their mission? Or do they want to support those who have a vision for their own transformation? Click here to read ...

MCI: fad or serious opportunity?

The debate on mission connected investing (MCI) is gaining momentum in the US, and parts of Europe. At a European level, there is ongoing discussion through the European Foundation Centre’s (EFC) interest group on social investment and recent studies in the UK and the US have contributed to a better understanding of some of the main obstacles, current foundation practice and lessons learned. However, how MCI translates across the rest of Europe is not yet clear. Click here to read ...

Mission-connected investment: a missed opportunity

Traditionally, foundations have separated grant income and goals from endowments. Barely half of UK charities apply any ethical considerations to their endowment investments. While some alternative investment approaches are being pioneered by foundations in the UK and overseas, these find little support. A new report from NEF (New Economics Foundation), Mission Possible: Emerging opportunities for mission-connected investment, suggests that mission-connected investment (MCI) is an investment approach that will allow foundations to achieve a market-level return while realizing social, ethical or environmental goals. Click here to read ...