Investors, bankers, and the finance community at large are not known for thinking of others when going about their business. After all, much of traditional economic theory is based on the concept of homo economicus, an individual who shows rational self-interest, attempting to maximise their own utility as a consumer and profit as a producer.
However, socially responsible/ethical investment funds have been around for decades, with a new wave of investors now demanding more when it comes to making ethical investment decisions. Instead of simply avoiding so called “sin stocks” (tobacco, alcohol, arms etc.) they go one step further by trying to invest in companies which they believe will have a positive impact on society. These investors want to do good, minimise any negative effects of their investment, and hopefully make a profit too.
While this approach is noble, it has put off some investors in the past as they have the belief that doing good and making money are mutually exclusive. This need not be the case however. For example, a recent study from New Model Advisor found that of 12 ethical funds that had performance data going back five years, the average one-year performance was 16.39%, 3.6 percentage points above the average return rate for all UK equity companies. At 76.11%, the funds outperformed the market average over five years by 8.6 points.
Investors looking to do good might want to take a look at CNPPS, a company which is currently looking to raise up to £100,000 on the Crowd for Angels platform. CNPPS is an innovative environmentally friendly technology company whose flagship product can potentially save billions in infrastructure expenditure, as well reducing global warming.
CNPPS (or Carbon Negative Permeable Pavement System) is believed to be the world’s first carbon negative permeable design and technology for paving hard surfaces such as roads or pavements. Using recycled and carbon negative aggregates, CNPPS is estimated to be 5-8% cheaper than asphalt systems and likely to be the first eco-friendly system globally. Helping to reduce global warming, it is believed that each meter squared paved using CNPPS captures the same amount of carbon as a medium sized tree during its lifetime.
Recognising its potential, the company has been shortlisted as one the ten finalists for the upcoming 2018 Mayor’s Entrepreneur award, a prize which recognises innovative ideas that can help to solve some of London’s most difficult environmental challenges.
To see the full pitch visit https://crowdforangels.com/company/CNPPS-Ltd-180
