The Canadian impact investing sector now accounts for 15 billion in assets, according to a first-of-its-kind report released by SVX, the University of Victoria, the Rothman School of Management, and Tapestry Community Capital.

The collaborative study also found that 64 per cent of impact investments achieve a market or above-market rate of return.

A further two-thirds of investments saw returns between two and eight per cent, with half exceeding four per cent.

More than 70 per cent of impact investments have terms of five years or longer, reflecting the patient capital model typical of the impact investment sector.

All investors make their investment decisions based on performance metrics. Traditional investors concentrate on financial metrics, but impact investors mainly consider impact metrics first.

However, the report noted that available impact metrics are fragmented and added that no industry-wide measurement framework exists in Canada.

Benchmarking and comparing indicators across organizations is also challenging, especially now that Canada’s Provincial Securities Commission (CSA) has suspended its efforts on mandatory climate-related disclosures for public companies.

In a Globe & Mail interview, CSA said that “the global economic and geopolitical landscape” influences this halt on climate-related disclosure.

More than one in four Canadian impact investments are focused on climate or energy solutions. 

Although most impact investing is done in the private market, mandatory climate-related disclosure for public companies would pressure standardized metrics for all companies, whether public or private.

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