Investing in Sustainable Companies

Marc L. Rinaldi, CPA, Rick Alexander, JD, Martin Whittaker, PhD, Lily Trager, and John Wilson

Rinaldi began the panel by referencing a survey in Family Wealth Report about impact investing, which said that returns for investment vehicles that took sustainability into account “almost exactly” met expectations, indicating that sustainability vehicles are not lower-gain investments, as some people think. He then asked Alexander to elaborate on benefit corporations and the role they play in sustainable investment. B corporations, Alexander explained, are any corporations that are managed to maximize the social benefits to all stakeholders, not just the financial benefits to their shareholders. B Labs offers certification to corporations, such as Ben & Jerry's and Plum Organics, that meet certain criteria for sustainable corporate governance. He noted that there are about 5,000 benefit corporations in the United States, and the first IPO for a benefit corporation, Laureate Education, took place in February 2017.