Last week, the impact investing community celebrated an important step forward in ensuring that U.S. communities' priorities are centered in the clean energy transition. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the eight recipients of funding under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund’s (GGRF) National Clean Investment Fund and Clean Communities Investment Fund.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Applauds Historic Modernization of the Community Reinvestment Act
Earlier this week, U.S. banking regulators released long-awaited rules finalizing transformative reforms to the 1977 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The Alliance applauds the regulating bodies for taking this action, which represents the most significant effort to modernize and strengthen the CRA in nearly 30 years.
Conceived in the wake of the civil rights movement, the CRA was enacted to rectify the historical practices of redlining by requiring banks to equitably serve their communities. The CRA has been instrumental in shaping the community investing ecosystem, flowing capital to community development financial institutions (CDFI) and minority depository institutions (MDI) that serve as critical intermediaries in underserved communities. That said, the CRA has yet to fulfill its core purpose.
Presidents’ Council on Impact Investing Names McKnight Foundation President Tonya Allen as Co-Chair
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance celebrates new appointment for the key group of philanthropic leaders dedicated to practicing and promoting impact investing
The Presidents’ Council on Impact Investing (Presidents’ Council) announced the appointment of Tonya Allen, President of the McKnight Foundation, as its newest Co-Chair.
Read the full press release.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Names John Palfrey, President of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, as Advisory Board Chair
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance (“Alliance”), an organization dedicated to building the impact investing ecosystem, today announced that John Palfrey will serve as the organization’s Advisory Board Chair, succeeding Darren Walker. Palfrey will be the third Chair of the Alliance, following Walker and Matt Bannick, former President of Omidyar Network.
Read the full press release.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Endorses New Legislation to Advance Employee Ownership
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance celebrates the introduction of a bipartisan, bicameral bill that will help catalyze employee ownership across the United States.
Owning a business is a key pathway to creating wealth and economic opportunity. Employee ownership models help democratize that pathway, by empowering workers and giving them a stake in the long-term success of not only their business, but their local economies.
The Employee Equity Investment Act (EEIA) builds on the existing Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program to attract private investment capital to help create and grow employee owned businesses.
Celebrating Government-Led Commitments to Equity and Community Investing Priorities
This week, leaders from the public, private, nonprofit and philanthropic sectors convened at the Treasury Department’s Freedman’s Bank Forum to consider their joint role in addressing economic disparities and promoting economic opportunities in communities of color. The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance congratulates the newly announced members of Treasury’s Advisory Committee on Racial Equity, representing community development finance experts, philanthropies, investment professionals and more.
Banking Regulators Set out to Strengthen Foundational Community Investing Policy
Earlier today, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) proposed significant reforms to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), an anti-redlining banking policy with roots tracing back to the civil rights movement. While the CRA has been catalytic, the racial wealth gap and access to capital divides persist, and the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance is supportive of the regulators’ latest efforts to modernize and strengthen the policy’s underlying framework.
Impact Transparency on Climate Risks Is Good for Business, Investors and the Economy as a Whole
A group of 60 impact-oriented business and investor organizations raises our collective and enthusiastic support for the SEC’s proposal to require U.S.-listed companies to disclose their exposure to climate risks, following longstanding calls from investors and other stakeholders. See our full comments to the SEC and keep reading to hear from the letter’s signatories directly.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Launches New Report on the Future of Community Investing
Today, the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance launched its new report, Impact in Place: Emerging Sources of Community Investment Capital and Strategies to Direct it at Scale. The report was commissioned by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
An Urgent Call to Biden-Harris Administration: Create White House Initiative on Inclusive Economic Growth
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, B Lab and a group Of 60 impact-oriented organizations have formed the Coalition On Inclusive Economic Growth. This group will push and work with the administration on advancing policies that refocus corporations and investors on real and equitable value creation that promotes quality jobs, thriving communities and the resilience of our planet.
A Proposal for a White House Initiative on Inclusive Economic Growth
The Biden-Harris Administration has inherited a multitude of crises, from the pandemic and economic recession, to systemic racial injustices and a crisis of Democracy. Building back better will be a challenge, and so policymakers must leverage every tool at their disposal to ensure success. The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance, along with our partners at B Lab and a growing coalition of over 45 organizations, propose the creation of a White House Initiative on Inclusive Economic Growth, staffed at the NEC, that could play a central coordinating role in promoting equitable economic policy across the Administration. The initiative would specifically seek to bring investor and business representatives to the table, ensuring that the private sector is engaged in the inclusive growth agenda.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Announces Spinout from the Ford Foundation
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance today announced its spinout from the Ford Foundation following the completion of a four-year incubation period. The organization will be fiscally sponsored by New Venture Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity, and the Alliance will now have more flexibility to work with stakeholders and engage with policymakers to help further develop the field and practice of impact investing. Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, will continue to serve as Chair of the Alliance’s Advisory Board.
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Publishes New Report on ‘Private Capital, Public Good’ With Bipartisan Call to Action
Comprehensive report includes 12 specific policy recommendations with the potential to catalyze impact investments to help address urgent social, economic and environmental challenges
Launching the Tipping Point Fund to Help Scale the Impact Investing Field
Foundations Push for Reporting Requirements on Opportunity Zone Funds
The Presidents’ Council on Impact Investing, a group of powerful private foundations, is asking legislators to add a mandatory reporting requirement and other regulations to the rulebook for opportunity zone funds.
Fran Seegull Testifies at IRS Hearing on Opportunity Zones
U.S. Impact Investing Alliance Executive Director Fran Seegull testified before the Internal Revenue Service on the importance of data collection and transparency in Opportunity Zones at a public hearing held February 14, 2019. Echoing written comments she called on the IRS and Treasury to take action to immediately begin collecting fund- and market-level information related to investments in Opportunity Zones.
Impact Investing Leaders Introduce Opportunity Zones Reporting Framework
The Future of Investing is Impact Investing
The United Nations estimates that achieving its 17 Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 will require trillions of dollars. The global goals aren’t the only way to measure our challenges, but they do paint a clear picture: given the scale of the problems the world faces, it’s clear that traditional sources of capital, like government aid and philanthropy, simply won’t be enough.