Invitation for Expressions of Interest: Get involved with a new EIIP Project on Equalising Investment Terms

How can investment terms, legal documentation and processes within impact investing better embed the principles and values of equality? To what extent do investment terms replicate forms of control and power that are poorly aligned with trust and collaborative partnership?

A key equality impact strategy is for investors – and their advisers – to take steps to improve their own organisational processes and practices, to ensure that these are consistent with their professed mission and values in promoting equality.

At present, a key factor in perpetuating inequality between impact investors and their investees is the impact of power imbalances between them, especially in relation to investment terms, processes and legal documentation.

We believe there is an exciting opportunity to re-imagine and re-visit key investment terms, processes and legal documentation with an ‘EII lens’, so that the models, tools and documents used within impact investing can be better aligned to work in the service of underlying principles of equality.

Over the coming months, EIIP in partnership with Bates Wells, will convene a reference group to explore this issue in-depth and co-develop practical responses to address it. In the first instance, we want to understand the ways that investment terms reproduce inequality – engaging directly with both investors and investees to hear their views and experiences. We will also explore potential practical solutions and ‘best practices’ already being implemented within the impact investor community. We aim to co-produce new guidance, provisions and options reflecting EII principles, that can then be integrated into investor practice

We’re now collecting expressions of interest around this project. Please follow this link to get in touch.