$1 Million Impact Investment Fund Opens
11 March 2015 at 10:17 am
Australian Not for Profits and social enterprises can now apply for a share in NAB’s new $1 million impact investment fund.
The NAB Impact Investment Readiness Fund, launched this week, will provide social sector organisations with targeted advice and support to help them secure investment to scale up their social or environmental impact.
Charities, social enterprises, community and voluntary organisations, social businesses, mutuals, co-operatives and businesses delivering social value are all eligible to apply for the Fund, which is a partnership between Impact Investing Australia and National Australia Bank (NAB), and was designed in consultation with The Difference Incubator.
The program will offer grants of up to $100,000 for enterprises to purchase specialised capacity building support from providers such as advisory, financial, intermediary or legal services
Applicants must apply jointly with the provider who is to work with them, demonstrate the characteristics of an investable enterprise and operate with an intentional social and/or environmental mission.
NAB’s Head of Community Finance and Development, Corinne Proske, said the fund will help support innovative solutions to social and environmental challenges facing Australia.
“The NAB Impact Investment Grants Program builds on the bank’s belief that the finance sector should play a role in addressing the significant growing social and environmental challenges facing Australia.
“The fund aims to bridge the gap in the Australian market that exists between mission-driven organisations in need of funding and investors actively seeking impact investment opportunities.
“The fund is designed to help them develop their ideas so that they can attract the necessary investment to make them succeed.”
Proske said NAB is hoping to attract additional funding for the program from other organisations.
“Our intention is that this $1 million is very much seed funding and we invite other organisations to step up and join us in nurturing impact investment in Australia,” she said.
“The establishment of an Impact Investment Readiness Fund is an important first step towards growing the market for impact investing in Australia.”
According to NAB, the Fund will support the development of the impact investment market in Australia through:
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Building capacity and capability of enterprises.
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Building sustainability and experience of providers.
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Delivering more transactions into the market.
It was initially announced in conjunction with the release of the Impact Investing Australia report, Delivering on Impact: The Australian Advisory Board Breakthrough Strategy to Catalyse Impact Investing, which predicted that there is the potential for A$10 billion in impact assets to be under management within the next five years.
The Fund was seeded by a $1m investment from NAB and has been designed to allow additional contributions to potentially grow it to the $10-$20 million, as recommended in the report by the Australian Advisory Board.
Click here for Application Guidelines
Click here for FAQs about the Fund
Click here to access the Grant Application form
