SINGAPORE, August 25th, 2017 – Law firms, Shearman & Sterling and Hogan Lovells, received the 2017 IIX Trailblazer Award at the 2nd annual Impact Investment Trailblazer Showcase for their commitment to redefine finance and generate social impact in the global community.
Shearman & Sterling and Hogan Lovells both boldly entered into unchartered territory to support Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) in constructing the first-of-its-kind Women’s Livelihood Bond. The two companies offered their time and talents for hundreds of pro bono hours to bring the first listed bond in the impact investing space to fruition. IIX applauds both firms for their active leadership in the impact investing ecosystem and their determination to venture into new territory and support innovative finance.
“Shearman & Sterling are very pleased to have been able to play a part in helping IIX realize the ground-breaking Women’s Livelihood Bond. This was the result of years of hard work, and one which allowed us to bring to bear our cross-border legal expertise and experience in advising on complex new financing structures, on a pro bono project with meaningful social impact, which was very gratifying – particularly given the hope that this will create a platform which can be used to channel ordinary investors into ventures that have a wide range of social benefits” said Alfred Ng, a Counsel at Shearman & Sterling.
Accepting the award on behalf of Hogan Lovells, Andy Ferris, a Partner at the firm, stated, “The Hogan Lovells team is delighted to receive the 2017 IIX Trailblazer Award. Our thanks go to the IIX team for inviting us to be part of the Women’s Livelihood Bond project. This ground-breaking transaction, a world first, is one we hope will act as a blueprint for future social impact investment projects. The innovation shown by IIX coupled with the pro bono and citizenship commitment of Hogan Lovells has, we hope, made a real change in the lives of women across Southeast Asia.”
The companies were presented the 2017 IIX Trailblazer Award at the Impact Investment Trailblazer Showcase, an event celebrating leaders and trends at the frontier of innovation in the impact investment space. This year’s showcase, hosted by IIX in partnership with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, brought together over 100 key players from the public, private and philanthropic sectors to discuss financing climate resilience in Asia and showcase three cutting-edge, climate-focused impact enterprises from across the region.
Robert Kraybill, Managing Director of IIX, expressed, “Shearman & Sterling and Hogan Lovells were a vital partner in the construction of the Women’s Livelihood Bond and stand as a testament to the active participation of diverse actors from across sectors that is needed to drive progress in impact investing.”
About IIX
IIX is a Singapore-based impact enterprise that bridges the gap between finance and development, carving out a third space for social and environmental solutions by unlocking investment capital. As a pioneer of impact investing, IIX builds pathways to connect the Wall Streets of the world with the backstreets of underserved communities. IIX platforms and innovative financial products enable impact enterprises to accelerate their business and scale their positive impact, while pushing the impact investing space from the margins to the mainstream. To date, the work of IIX has spanned 20 countries and continues to expand with the mission of unlocking US$5.6 billion of impact investment capital, impacting 300 million lives by 2022.
For media enquiries, please contact Jocelyn Matyas at jmatyas@iixglobal.com, (+65) 6221-7051
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