Since 2007, the ability to become a Certified B Corporation (“B Corp”) has given companies a way to set themselves apart as being mission-oriented and focused on priorities beyond shareholder returns. As of October 2024, this global movement encompasses nearly 9,500 companies in more than 100 countries, spans 160 industries and includes many household brand names such as Athleta, allbirds, Ben & Jerry’s, Danone North America, Eileen Fisher, New Belgium Brewing Co., and Patagonia. Could B Corp certification be the right choice for your business?
/continue readingCategory: Impact Investment
Public Benefit Corporations Explained
Should you consider forming your business as a benefit corporation or perhaps investing in one? Benefit corporations, also called public benefit corporations in some states, are a relatively new form of corporate entity that has grown in popularity in recent years. First recognized in 2010 in Maryland, this form of entity is now available in the overwhelming majority of U.S. jurisdictions. The benefit corporation form of entity takes aim at a key feature of traditional corporate law that can create tension with a mission-oriented or impact-driven business: namely, that directors and officers of corporations may have a legal duty to prioritize the maximization of financial return to shareholders above all else. Failure to do so exposes traditional corporations and their managers to the risk of lawsuits by shareholders for breach of that fiduciary duty.
/continue readingMission-Related Investing: A Legal Framework for Integrating Mission Into the Other 95%
Mission-related investing – the practice of aligning a foundation’s endowment with its philanthropic goals – has the potential to substantially increase the amount of capital available to address social and environmental challenges. That’s because only 5% of a foundation’s endowment must be paid out each year as grants or “program-related investments.” /continue reading
Investing in an Impact Fund
With a growing focus on aligning investment portfolios with mission and increasing options for investors wishing to do so, putting a process in place for analyzing and negotiating such investments is more important than ever. Below is a summary of key terms that investors in any type of private fund should review, with a special emphasis on how to think about these terms in the context of an impact fund: /continue reading
Three Ways Investment Advisers Can Market with Compliance in Mind
In September 2017, the SEC’s Office of Compliance, Inspections and Examinations issued a Risk Alert making clear that the SEC is paying increased attention to the advertising practices of investment advisers. The Alert summarizes the most frequent Advertising Rule violations that OCIE comes across in its examinations of investment advisers and evidences a growing concern by the SEC that investment advisers are regularly violating the rule. /continue reading