PROSPERO | Among the Best Funds
In 2009, when the words “impact investing” emerged on the lips of thousands of financial professionals, two important new sets of criteria emerged to begin to define what those words mean: Impact Reporting and Investment Standards (IRIS, and the Global Investment Impact Rating System (GIIRS). The inventors of such systems identified the need for measurement standards and a rigorous means of evaluating social and environmental impact.
The independent nonprofit B Lab created the GIIRS rating system to assist fund managers in assessing and verifying the impacts of their portfolio companies. Companies are rated based on their performance on Impact Assessment B, which is administered by B Lab and incorporates IRIS metrics. Each fund then undergoes a verification process by B Lab to become a GIIRS rated fund.
The funds receive two qualifications: They are classified in bronze, silver, gold or platinum based on whether the purpose and mission of the companies inherently create a social or environmental good according to an Impact Business Model (IBM for its acronym in English). This rating is called the “IBM Rating”. The second is a star rating -3, 4 or 5 stars- based on the governance structure, treatment of employees and policies, community involvement and environmental footprint (“Operational Rating”).
Top 10 Funds based on their Impact Business Model
We are pleased to announce that our Prospero Microfinance Fund is included in the first annual list of the World’s Best Funds, which recognizes the impact of 50 GIIRS-rated funds in 2016.
Prospero is among the top 5 funds in emerging markets due to the Impact Business Model of the companies in its portfolio, which specifically recognizes companies designed to solve social or environmental problems.
