Project: Intentional Impact Product – UK Asset Manager

Grant: £20,000

Sumerian Foundation (SF) is looking to scale up the work of its UK social inequality facility, established in 2017, by bringing in other forms of capital from the asset management sector. SF is piloting a fund that will offer small-scale investment over a long period, through equity or equity-like investments. The fund will be designed with an ‘impact first’ focus, allowing asset managers to measure and report impact in ways that are considered meaningful to asset owners and enabling them to have a greater impact in their areas of interest. The product will mean social outcomes are measured and reported by SF against key performance indicators pre-agreed with the asset manager.

This development grant will enable SF to engage a third-party expert in impact management to improve its impact management process to be both fit-for-purpose regarding the needs of the asset manager and to improve its pre-investment guidance. Through the pilot, SF will be able to support the growth and impact of early and growth-stage charities and enterprises, by providing patient and flexible finance in the form of quasi-equity with pre and post-investment support. This approach can then be replicated by other trusts and foundations with support from SF’s venture philanthropy learning platform.