The Global Impact Investing Rating System (GIIRS) is proud to announce the twelve North American Pioneer Funds at SOCAP 10, the largest interdisciplinary gathering of individuals and institutions at the intersection of money and meaning.
GIIRS is a ratings agency that provides social and environmental impact ratings for companies and funds seeking to raise capital from impact investors. GIIRS stands for the Global Impact Investing Rating System. The twelve leading North American impact investing funds named as GIIRS Pioneer Funds at SOCAP 10 join thirteen leading emerging market funds named at the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship in April. Collectively, the 25 GIIRS Pioneer fund managers represent $1.2b in assets under management and have investments in more than 200 high impact companies in over 30 countries.
GIIRS Pioneer Funds will be the first funds to receive GIIRS ratings, creating a global population of GIIRS-rated funds that, for the first time, will give institutional investors the rigorous, comparable, independently-assured metrics they need to channel more capital into the emerging asset class of impact investments. GIIRS was created by the non-profit B Lab.
“By committing to a rigorous third party impact rating, these funds solidify their position as leaders in the emerging asset class of impact investing.” says GIIRS Managing Director and B Lab co-founder Andrew Kassoy. “The Pioneer funds are raising the bar, challenging other would-be impact investment funds to join them in differentiating those funds making a measurable impact from those simply telling a nice story.”
North American GIIRS Pioneer funds include City Light, Capital Core Innovation Capital, Equilibrium Capital, Good Capital, Mindful Investors, Murex Investments, Renewal Partners, RSF Social Finance, Satori Capital, SJF Ventures, SustainVC, and TBL Capital. A description of each of these innovative fund managers is attached.
GIIRS Fund Ratings are determined based on a roll-up of the ratings of each of the companies in a fund’s underlying investment portfolio. A beta version of GIIRS will be launched with the GIIRS Pioneer Funds starting in January 2011. GIIRS plans a public launch for Q2 2011. GIIRS builds on the B Impact Ratings System, the ratings system that the nonprofit B Lab developed to certify B Corporations and which has been used by over 6,000 companies to date.
GIIRS has received significant investment and philanthropic capital from Prudential Financial, Deloitte, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Rockefeller Foundation. GIIRS is the exclusive impact ratings partner for Investors’ Circle and is supported by other leading impact investing intermediaries such as Toniic, Mission Markets, the GIIN, and IRIS.
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About GIIRS and B Lab
GIIRS is a ratings agency that provides social and environmental impact ratings for companies and funds seeking to raise capital from impact investors. GIIRS stands for the Global Impact Investing Rating System. GIIRS gives institutional investors for the first time the rigorous, comparable, third party metrics they need to channel more capital into the emerging asset class of impact investments. GIIRS is a project of the nonprofit B Lab.
B Lab is a nonprofit organization dedicated to using the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. B Lab drives systemic change through three interrelated initiatives: 1) building a community of Certified B Corporations to make it easier for all of us to tell the difference between “good companies” and just good marketing; 2) accelerating the growth of the impact investing asset class through use of B Lab’s GIIRS impact rating system by institutional investors; and 3) promoting supportive public policies, including legislation creating a new corporate form and tax, procurement, and investment incentives for sustainable business.
Full List of North American Pioneer Funds
City Light Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in early stage companies which provide not only strong financial returns, but also positive contributions to our world. City Light invests in early stage businesses in the US that create solutions in Safety and Security, Education and Media, and Energy and the Environment.
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Core Innovation Capital invests in the most innovative companies serving underbanked consumers in America. They focus scalable, technology-driven solutions delivering the highest value to underbanked people.
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Equilibrium Capital Group is an investment management firm that is building a portfolio of asset management companies, each charged with executing a unique investment strategy in one of our key sectors: green built environment; land and natural resource management; agriculture; energy; and water.
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Good Capital is an investment firm that accelerates the flow of capital to innovative ventures and initiatives that harness the power of the market to create sustainable solutions to some of society’s most challenging problems. In addition, Good Capital is committed to collaborating with peers, contributing thought leadership, sharing their experiences, and creating innovative products and processes that enables the market for socially minded capital to flourish.
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Mindful Investors is an investment partnership focused exclusively on opportunities in the rapidly growing natural and organic consumer products market. Mindful Investors’ mission is to invest in sustainable companies which positively impact our health and the health of our planet.
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Murex Investments invests venture capital in high-impact, early-stage software and technology companies. Their experience and interest is primarily in financial mobility, learning technology and energy efficiency, sectors that they believe to have unique transformational potential and integral broad benefits to society.
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SustainVC invests in companies that apply for financing through Investors’ Circle, an association of accredited investors who provide “Patient Capital for a Sustainable Future.” Capital for SustainVC’s funds is provided by high net worth individuals, many of whom are successful business entrepreneurs and are leaders in the field of sustainability.
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Renewal2 is a social venture fund dedicated to delivering financial returns by investing in some of North America’s leading environmental and social mission businesses. Renewal2’s focus sectors include organic & natural foods, green consumer products and green building products.
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RSF Mezzanine Fund is the only mezzanine fund designed specifically for companies with high social impact. The RSF Mezzanine Fund provides capital to help an enterprise achieve growth through a mix of debt, warrants, royalty streams, fee notes, and/or convertible notes.
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Satori Capital is a preferred capital partner for companies that are building significant long-term value through a sustainable approach. The firm makes majority investments in companies with $3m to $15m of EBITDA, across six sectors: Consumer, Financial Services, Manufacturing, Business Services, Mature Tech, and Retail (e-commerce). They partner with talented management teams to accelerate the growth of companies that are “built to last” and meet a set of criteria they describe as sustainability. These businesses deliver strong returns by operating with a long-term perspective, committing to their mission or purpose, and focusing on creating value for all stakeholders.
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SJF Ventures is a venture capital partnership which provides equity financings to companies seeking expansion capital. SJF Ventures focuses on the cleantech, business and Web-enhanced services, and premium consumer products sectors. Representative investment areas include renewable energy and efficiency, recycling, grid and infrastructure technologies, organic and healthy consumer products, digital media and marketing services, and outsourced business services.
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TBL Capital has developed an intentional, patient capital venture fund focused on the needs of the entrepreneur while aligning our investments with triple-bottom-line companies. TBL provides growth capital to companies in the consumer products, service providers, software, clean technology, green building, health and wellness, and retail sectors
©2010 B Lab, Inc. a non-profit organization www.giirs.org