Generation Buy Now, Pay Later
Forwarded this email by a friend? Subscribe here.
Season’s Greetings!
It’s almost 2022, and a new COVID-19 variant threatening to take us back to 2020 has everyone on edge. Countries are announcing new travel rules and vaccine makers are prepping for more trials and research. The biggest Black Friday sales were at the stock market, where prices plunged — with the notable exception of early lockdown favorites like Zoom, Peloton, and, well, Clorox.
No one knows what will happen next, but here’s something positive: the pandemic spurred immense growth in impact investing (measurable positive impact + financial returns) after it exposed severe inequalities and inadequate infrastructure around the world. The goals of investing have been shifting during the crisis, and people are putting their money to work for themselves and the greater good.
One way individual retail investors can practice impact investing is in the bond market, where companies and governments raise money to spend on green, social, or sustainability initiatives. The other way is in the stock market, by buying shares in impactful companies or investing in impact funds that choose and hold such shares. (Scroll for the gender approach to this in today’s Figure in Focus below).
You can tune in today to Investing for Good USA (FT Moral Money) for a full day of interesting panels on a wide range of relevant topics. One we will be watching: Opportunities in the Green Recovery at 2:30 pm ET, which includes FWIW founder Jean Case.
What we’ve been thinking about …
- The “Tesla for boats” raised another $30 million from investors, including General Motors. There’s also talk of making superyachts, the world’s most carbon-intensive asset, greener.
- There has been a lot of hype around IPOs this year, but a study out this week shows that 49% of the 2021 IPOs that raised $1 billion or more on their debut are now below their listing price.
- Paying with cryptocurrencies isn’t mainstream yet, but startups see the tech transforming philanthropy and remittances, or the transfer of money by migrant workers to families overseas.
- Snacks made of would-be waste ingredients, like bruised and rejected fruit, are pegged as a food trend to watch in 2022. “Rescued lemons” may be the cutest phrase ever.
