The latest developments in the environmental, social and governance-driven investments and banking space.

Elizabeth Park, Calvert Impact
Elizabeth Park Capital Management has teamed up with Calvert Impact – both of them US firms – to build an investment fund for “mission-driven” US banks. 

The Mission Driven Bank Fund, as it is called, will be established to support Minority Depository Institutions and Community Development Financial Institution banks through direct investment, market development and other technical support services. The fund seeks to improve bank sustainability, promote an equitable economy, and address chronic gaps in racial access to financial services, according to a statement from the institutions.

The fund will focus on about 300 mission-driven banks across the US that expand access to credit in traditionally unbanked and rural communities and communities of color. 

MDI and CDFI banks are designed to drive access to wealth and income-building opportunities, such as owning a home, expanding a small business, or buying land, for people and families who have otherwise been underserved by the financial system.

Microsoft and Truist are anchor investors in the fund. They have partnered with sub-advisors Strategic Value Bank Partners and West Potomac Capital.