From the Margins to the Mainstream. Assessment of the Impact Investment Sector and Opportunities to Engage Mainstream Investors.

In 2013 the World Economic Forum published a report about the development of impact investing from the margins into the mainstream. Investors have great influence over the social, environmental and economic challenges of societies, yet operate within a market infrastructure and investment ecosystem where the incentives do not generally balance social, environmental and economic impact. Impact investing – an investment approach intentionally seeking to create both financial return and positive social impact that is actively measured – has been lauded as an emerging investment approach with the potential to reconcile key shortcomings in traditional financial markets.[nbsp]In this report the WEF consults the[nbsp]senior most decision-makers and portfolio managers of the largest and most innovative investors in the world; this uniquely helps facilitate a more realistic vantage point on the challenges in scaling the sector. Working with this group is also instrumental in raising awareness and knowledge among key stakeholders for taking impact investing from the margins into the mainstream.