Impact Investment Market Opportunities for Wealth Management Sector

The report identifies key product and service offerings by major private banks in these regions. It also highlights key strategies adopted by wealth managers, fund managers and governments worldwide to target impact investors. The analysis is based on extensive primary research with key experts in the field to determine current trends and future expectations, enabling financial advisors to remain competitive in the wealth management industry. Impact investments have become a new investment option among HNWIs and UHNWIs worldwide. They have significantly increased in market size, despite their relatively recent development in 2007. JP Morgan and Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) estimated the market size of impact investments at around US$46 billion in 2013. In the UK market, impact investments valued GBP200 million in 2014, and are set to grow to GBP1 billion by 2016.

While 67% of impact investment funds are headquartered in Europe and North America, 70% of impact investment capital is being channeled towards emerging markets. Microfinance and financial services combined accounted for 42% of global impact investment funds in 2014. This was followed by energy at 11%, housing at 8% food and agriculture at 8%, and healthcare at 6%. Impact investments are becoming more important among European governments and UHNWIs. Demand for socio-economic impact investments is growing in emerging economies. Limited availability of developed social enterprises is a barrier for impact investment growth.

Different investment types – ‘finance first’ or ‘impact first’ – make the asset rather complex and difficult to value. This has led to the development of a separate wealth management division in private banks, often known as sustainable investing, responsible investing, or social finance divisions. While the majority of impact investment supply-side participants – HNWIs, corporate investors, asset managers, wealth managers and private banks – are based in developed countries such as the UK and the US, the majority of demand-side participants are based in emerging countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, China, Brazil and India. This structure generates gaps in the wealth management market, requiring further research. This report aims to provide an in-depth analysis of key market insights and the future outlook of impact investment over the forecast period.

This report covers areas like attitudes of wealth managers and private banks to targeting impact investors, a global market snapshot of impact investments, strategies for targeting impact investments and key market regulations as well as high-profile HNWI and UHNWI impact investors. The research helps understand significance of impact investments in the wealth management sector, and recognize how this asset class can have potential benefits to private banks. Be informed about latest market trends on impact investment products and services offerings in the six regions studied, and draw competitor analysis, Be aware of attitudes of wealth managers and private banks towards the future outlook of impact investments and Make informed decisions about impact investment growth and build better business strategies to target impact investors with the help of this report. Comprehensive table of contents and more on Insight Report: Impact Investments 2015 – Global Opportunities here.