8IP Australian Equity Impact Fund

Eight Investment Partners (8IP) has launched its 8IP Australian Equity Impact Fund to retail investors.

The fund invests in Australian companies that are, according to 8IP, "solving the world's problems." It includes companies based on positive social and environmental impact, but excludes companies in the alcohol, tobacco, logging of old growth forests, weapons, gambling, pornography, nuclear and fossil fuel industries.

"We increasingly felt that there were sufficient listed companies to create an impact investing fund and so we seeded the 8IP Australian Equity Impact Fund ...My belief is that impact investing can produce attractive returns for investors, as many of the underlying problems addressed by these companies are long-term megatrends," 8IP CIO, Kerry Series, said.

The fund was launched as an unregistered management investment scheme in January 2017, and a registered managed investment scheme on 6 March 2018.