Bron
Phenix Capital
In order to stimulate impact investments, a worldwide movement has been developed under the leadership of the Global Steering Group (GSG): the National Advisory Board (NAB). 21 countries and the EU as a whole have adopted a National Advisory Board. NABs bring all stakeholders within the field together, and as such the knowledge and know-how of local success stories are shared to be utilised worldwide. Is there a need for an NAB in the Netherlands? Phenix Capital, together with Social Finance NL and other investment consultants C-Change and Enclude Holding, have addressed this question involving a number of key stakeholders. The conclusion: such need is there!
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Executive summary
The goal of this report is to bring together observations and findings from desk research and interviews with a variety of stakeholders of the impact investment field in the Netherlands to assess whether setting up a National Advisory Board in the Netherlands is of added value to the Dutch, but also global field of impact investment.
PROCESS
A feasibility study was set up in which 21 main actors in the Netherlands were interviewed either in person or via a call. The interviewees represented a variety of stakeholders of the impact investment ecosystem in the Netherlands. In addition, 5 international interviews were held in which the EU, Australian, Italian and UK NABs and the GSG itself were also asked for their views on the added value of a NAB, how to best set up a NAB and what the focus areas should be.
WHY A DUTCH NAB
The main goal of the Dutch NAB is to improve and shape the impact investment ecosystem in both the Netherlands and globally to reach the SDGs. According to Dutch stakeholders a Dutch NAB is able to reach this goal as it makes it possible to:
- Centralize efforts
- Create a common language, i.e. same definitions and standardizations and a similar understanding of what impact investments are
- Create a community with a local and global voice to be able to share expertise, lessons learned and best practices in a more formal way both with the national and international field
- Help the field share its successes but also its mistakes
- Bridge the current gap between impact enterprises and impact investors
WHAT THE CORE ACTIVITIES OF A DUTCH NAB SHOULD BE
- Ecosystem development
- Strengthen and shape the Dutch impact investment ecosystem
- Bring together all stakeholders of the field
- Policy making & advocacy
- Explore whether a central government unit is desirable
- Facilitate educational programmes and capacity building
- Together with government reflect more broadly on how money is spent, opportunities around outcomes-based commissioning, access to capital for impact businesses, and whether specific legislation is necessary
- Innovation & attracting capital (institutional) Knowledge development, i.e. on risk assessment
- Set up a wholesale impact investment fund
- Set up a national outcomes fund
- Research & standardisation
- Create shared definitions
- Create a common language and practices on impact management and measurement
