Sizing Impact Investment Markets

Stakeholders across the global impact economy recognize that a persistent barrier to scaling the market, is the lack of foundational market size and maturity data at a national and regional level.

As is the case for stakeholders in any industry, market data serves not only as a baseline reference for growth potential and opportunity in a market, but also informs investment and product innovation decisions relative to alternative options. Many investors, in particular large institutional investors such as pension funds with legislated investment mandates, will only enter the impact investment market when greater clarity and specificity can be provided.

International policymakers and field-builders also value aggregating such data into a regional and global view, in order to look at trends and implications across geographies, sectors, asset classes and impact areas, to inform national and multinational policy initiatives and regulatory changes.

Finally, standard global definitions and methodologies for market sizing would provide all stakeholders in the impact economy with reassurance that the market is being scaled with integrity. A standard yardstick, particularly in a global investment environment, would help to ensure that the intentions, actions and claims of all actors – suppliers and users of capital as well as market intermediaries – can be robustly and transparently assessed and verified.