Scaling Impact Investing in Canada Through Mobilizing Asset Owners

Scaling Impact Investing in Canada Through Mobilizing Asset Owners identifies challenges and barriers to impact investing in Canada and recommends 18 actions that investors, asset managers and beneficiaries can take to accelerate the mobilization of capital into impact investing.

This report was created for the Canadian Impact Investing Working Group, of which we are a member. The group consists of 11 organizations from across the country who have come together, under the leadership of Fondaction, to create a space to exchange ideas between impact investors in Canada, better structure the impact investing sector, encourage the development of best practices in impact investing and increase the number of participants and capital flows to impact investments.

The report was published in May 2024, alongside the following statement: 

The Will, the Means and the Boldness of Canadian Investors

Every day, as investors, we see social, environmental, and economic crises at home, in Canada and abroad. We need to act. As investors and stewards, we believe we have both a role and a responsibility in ensuring our capital contributes to building a just, sustainable and prosperous future. Some call it a duty.

The Will

We want to scale opportunities and investments while doing so with purpose, investing where capital is most needed and where it catalyzes tangible systemic changes and positive returns for the people and the planet. Our group is part of a movement advocating for change that started decades ago through sustainable investment. We want to go a step further into financing change. We aim to convince our peers to integrate investing with the intention to drive positive change, embed impact into their investment strategy while empowering and building the next generation of investment professionals. We know that impact investing can be a preferred investment approach for beneficiaries and clients, without sacrificing returns.

The Means

As investors, we have the means to make a difference. Capital is being pledged fast and we need to structure this deployment to scale impact investing with integrity. The Canadian impact investing industry was estimated to be valued at $14 billion in 2023, up 56% from $9 billion in 2015, and is projected to grow three to four times to $46 billion by 2030. This is a huge opportunity to scale solutions and create impact here in Canada and be a global leader.

Our call to action is grounded on the publication of our report “Scaling Impact Investing in Canada Through Mobilizing Asset Owners”, which highlights the common drivers and barriers to impact investing. There is something for everyone from our industry in this report, no matter where you are in your impact journey. As a first step, our group convened other investors during Montreal’s Sustainable Finance Week to discuss a path to scaling impact investing.

The Boldness

The 18 recommendations and proposed actions in the report are designed to empower various market stakeholders and help investors overcome the barriers they face in deploying capital for impact. We call on every investor – from pension fund managers to institutional investors to individual contributors – to champion these recommendations to make a difference, at their own level, right now. As a group, we would welcome the collaboration of all stakeholders across the multiple action pillars.

Our duty lies with the people and the planet. We are instruments of the collective power of our beneficiaries and our clients, and we must use this power in shaping a world that considers the common good. This is a call to use our will, means and boldness, to finance and shape an economy that meets people’s needs while respecting the limits of the planet.

– from the members of the Canadian Impact Investing Working Group