HOW TO INVEST
Support local, shop local – now you can invest local too. Align your investments with your values, and earn a financial return while supporting positive social, environmental, and community impact.
OUR BREAKTHROUGH
In 2018, Pillar Nonprofit Network and SVX – in partnership with local partners and collaborators – established the VERGE Breakthrough Fund to demonstrate that investors can earn a financial return while creating positive community impact. This fund is first of its kind in Southwestern Ontario. At the time of its launch, our research indicated that there was over $40 billion of assets in Southwestern Ontario held in traditional investment portfolios, but there was no way for investors to direct that capital towards local social enterprises.
A total of 20 individuals and organizations participated in the Breakthrough Fund, investing over $2.2 million, including a grant from the Government of Ontario that Pillar invested and designated as first-loss capital. The closed seven year fund has since been fully deployed into a diversified portfolio of established social enterprises and community infrastructure such as green energy projects, nature conservation, affordable housing developments, and innovation and entrepreneurship hubs.
BECOME AN
IMPACT INVESTOR
VERGE Capital is currently designing its next fund to be available to both accredited and retail investors. We firmly believe in opening up impact investing to a broader and more inclusive audience, where more people have an opportunity to participate in an economy where social, environmental, and community impact and financial returns are not mutually exclusive.
With this larger fund, we intend to expand on our mission to support social enterprises owned by, led by, or serving historically excluded and marginalized populations, such as women, Indigenous and people of colour, immigrants and newcomers, rural residents, members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, and people with disabilities.
Interested in aligning your investments with your values? Contact us to learn how you can become an impact investor, and to get on the wait list for our next fund!
We also encourage you to learn more about other similar impact investing opportunities currently available to Southwestern Ontario residents:
Carolinian Canada Conservation Impact Bond (focused on natural habitat rehabilitation)
Community Energy Development Co-operative and LIFE Co-op (focused on renewable energy)
Fair Finance Fund (focused on food and farm enterprises)
Indwell (focused on building affordable housing communities)
Union: Sustainable Development Co-operative (focused on preserving community-owned affordable housing)