Canadian impact investing products growing, concentrated in real estate and climate
The number of impact investing products available to Canadians continues to grow, but the portion of products that expect to reach significant above-market returns has declined.
SVX’s recent report on the Canadian impact investing market has found that 65 per cent of Canadian impact investing products provide returns at or above market rate.
The research, published on Apr. 24, has also found that more financial products are adopting formal impact management frameworks. Despite that, there is fragmentation in how impact is measured and managed, leading to a lack of comparability between products.
Between 2025 and 2026, there have been significant increases in impact investments in the climate, real estate, diversity and inclusion, and agricultural sectors. Last year, the majority of products had terms of investment that ranged between three and five years.
This year, however, 53 per cent of products have investment terms of more than seven years.
A new version of the T3010 Registered Charity Information Return, applicable after Dec. 31, 2023, requires all charities and foundations to declare impact investments and any income generated from them.
Philanthropic Foundations of Canada will also be expanding the scope of its investment surveys to include impact investment.
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