Investing for Impact British International Investment

In this episode of the IMPACT= Podcast, we talk to Tom Hall, Head of Social Impact and Philanthropy at UBS, one of the world’s leading wealth managers.

With nearly 20 years' experience working in impact and philanthropy, Tom is passionate about finding ways to catalyse scalable solutions to the pressing social and environmental problems the world is facing.

In this conversation, Tom shares his experience of working with philanthropists who want to use their resources to change the world. And discusses why he believes sustainable investments with tangible impact outcomes, are key to driving real change.

Tom leads UBS’s Social Impact team of over 150 professionals across the globe, who work with clients and UBS employees to maximize their impact locally and globally. Prior to joining UBS in 2013, Tom spent his career in the non-profit sector. As Director of Philanthropy and Social Investment at the Disability Charity Scope, he pioneered the use of social investment structures, including the Scope Bond which was the first listed bond issued by an operational charity in the UK. Tom also worked with the cabinet office on the development of the new Social Investment Tax Relief.

In this episode of the IMPACT= Podcast, we talk to Manfred Schepers, the founder and CEO of ILX Management, the Amsterdam-based manager of emerging market-focused private credit fund, ILX Fund.

He believes that not only are development finance institutions among the best emerging market investors in the world, but pension funds should be looking to commit capital alongside them.

ILX provides institutional investors access to investment opportunities of the development finance asset class, by investing in private-sector loans arranged by Multilateral Development Banks and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs).

The rationale for his approach? Because DFIs have a proven track record of producing solid and long-term financial results and have very low rates of investment failures, despite investing in some of the least developed markets in the world.

Manfred has over 30 years’ of senior-level experience in both development finance and international capital markets. Prior to founding ILX Management, he was Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and led the Bank’s Institutional Investment Partnership program. He has also worked at SBC Warburg and UBS where he was Global Head of Debt Capital Markets from 1990-2004.

In this episode of the IMPACT= Podcast, we talk to Jane Goodland, Group Head of Sustainability at the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) - a cornerstone of global finance, providing a platform for businesses and economies to access capital, manage risk, and create jobs.

In this role, Jane leads a team who work in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders across the business and externally, to embed LSEG’s sustainability strategy across the full value chain including its own operations, supply chain, market engagement and customer solutions.

Jane has over 25 years of experience in sustainable finance. Her extensive career has seen her at the forefront of the sustainable and responsible investment market, where she has been instrumental in designing and establishing new sustainable finance capabilities across various market segments.

Prior to her role at LSEG, Jane served as the Corporate Affairs Director at Quilter, specializing in external communications, public affairs, responsible investment, and stakeholder engagement. Her tenure at Willis Towers Watson as the Global Head of Sustainable and Responsible Investment further solidified her expertise, where she developed new manager research capabilities and consulted on investment services for large institutional clients.

In this conversation, we talk to Jane about her pivotal role in shaping the group's sustainability strategy on a global scale and making the most of London's position as global financial hub to drive sustainable practices and impact investment.

The climate emergency is having a devastating impact on emerging economies. Without decisive action, this will only become more severe as global temperatures rise and as countries transition toward net zero.

Emerging economies are among the nations most exposed to and the least prepared for the effects of climate change. This is particularly the case across Africa, South and South-East Asia, and the Caribbean, where we invest.

In this episode of the IMPACT= Podcast, we explore how the climate crisis is affecting businesses in emerging economies through the lens of our Emerging Economies Climate Report.

We recently launched the report at an event with a panel of expert speakers to dig deeper into the findings, and explore how we can address climate risks and maximise opportunities in emerging economies. In this podcast, we cover some of the key contributions from our speakers:






Amal-Lee Amin, Managing Director, Head of Climate, Diversity and Advisory, British International Investment

Michael Jacobs, Visiting Senior Fellow, ODI

Nicola Mustetea, Director, Head of Climate Change, British International Investment

Shivanand Nimbargi, Chief Executive Officer, Ayana Renewable Power

Benjamin Njenga, Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer, Apollo Agriculture

Nick Robins, Professor of Sustainable Finance, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment

In this episode of the IMPACT= podcast, we talk to Vineet Rai, Founder and Chairman of the Aavishkaar Group – an impact investment platform that “exists to bridge the opportunity gap for the emerging three billion”.

Founded in 2001 by Vineet, the group comprises of Aavishkaar Capital – the groundbreaking impact investment fund manager, Arohan – a microfinance institution, IntelleGrow – a venture debt company, Tribe3 – a technology-enabled lending platform and IntelleCap – the global impact ecosystem builder. The group also manages Sankalp – a renowned global platform for engagement around impact investing.

Today the group manages assets of more than $1.2 billion, operates in over 50 countries, and employs over 7000 people.

Together they serve the needs of entrepreneurs with investments ranging from debt of US $150, to equity of $15 million, while aligning the group to 13 out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals or SDG’s.

Vineet, who believes that impact investing has the potential to change the world of finance irreversibly, has received numerous awards including the Impact Investor of the Year by News Corp for 2016 and the Porter Prize for Strategic Leadership in Social Space.

In this conversation, Vineet shares his journey to becoming a pioneering impact leader, the challenges he faced and how he overcame them. He also shares valuable insights on investing in SMEs and start-ups, and offers advice to future impact investors.

In this episode of the IMPACT = podcast, we talk to Jessica Espinoza, Chief Executive Officer of 2X Global – the leading organisation championing the growth of gender lens investment.

2X Global works together with the full spectrum of investors, capital providers, mobilisers, and influencers, with the aim to transform international finance systems through the deployment of gender-smart capital across asset classes and markets.

Jessica has a track record in originating, structuring and executing debt, mezzanine and equity deals in emerging and frontier markets with a strong focus on inclusive innovation. Prior to joining 2X Global, Jessica was Vice President for Private Equity & Venture Capital Investments at DEG/KfW. She was also a Member of the Management Board at ProCredit Bank Nicaragua responsible for the Business Clients Division and managed the Africa Regional Office of MicroFinance Transparency.

In this conversation, Jessica talks about the evolution of gender lens investing over the last five years, the policies and regulations needed to help accelerate this type of investing and the challenges and opportunities for investors.