Investing in social impact

NOT too long ago, Inter-Pacific Asset Management Sdn Bhd launched its InterPac Social Enterprise and Responsibility Fund.

The new product, hopes chief executive officer Lim Tze Cheng, would not only make good returns for its investors but also encourage them to share their returns with different social causes.

The open-ended fund, launched last April, will disburse 20% of the gains, based on increase in the fund’s net asset value (NAV), back to the investors every year so that they can use the money to contribute to various social responsibility projects and charities of their choice.

The remaining 80% will be reinvested back into the fund.

The fund invests in equities listed in the local and Asean markets other than those involved in gaming, alcohol, tobacco and other businesses regarded as vice. It also has a flexible asset allocation in money market instruments.

“We are trying to do things differently. We want to put investors first but also want to ensure that we have a social impact to what we are doing,” says Lim.

However, actual utilisation of the disbursement is at the sole discretion of the investors.

The minimum initial investment for the fund is RM300,000.

The fund aims to achieve at least 6% growth per annum but Lim cautions that it is not a guaranteed return.

“In order to draw more interest towards CSR, we need to show that there are returns first. We are making money so that investors can give,” says Lim.

Lim adds that the fund is targeting longterm investors who are also keen to do good with their investments as well as corporations that are looking for avenues to invest for their corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts.

He hopes to create a sustainable social contribution vehicle through this fund by encouraging investors to be responsible to their communities.

“We want to help investors see this fund as an investment into CSR. It is about giving back a portion of your gains to the community and sharing the wealth that we have generated from the community.

“We are distributing the funds back to the investors so that we can localise the social impact and encourage self-participation from the investors themselves instead of outsourcing the disbursement of funds to charity to another party,” he says.