Impact investing as a lens

The 2026 Impact Investment Summit, held in Sydney on 25–26 March, brought together over 800 delegates from across Australasia to explore how impact investing can shape systems rather than sit as a separate allocation.

Representing Aotearoa were leaders from BayTrust, Trust Waikato, Rotorua Trust, TECT, Trust Horizon, Acorn, Soul Capital, and Mindful Money.

The Summit highlighted impact as a portfolio lens, integrating financial and social outcomes across 100% of capital. Key themes included systems-level stewardship, gender lens investing, and blended capital approaches linking government, philanthropy, and private investors.

Discussion centred on coordination as the biggest barrier to scale, not capital, and how institutional investors can embed impact throughout portfolios.

With Australia’s impact market now exceeding AUD 157 billion, momentum across the region is accelerating. For Aotearoa, the challenge and opportunity lie in adopting this whole-of-portfolio mindset—where impact becomes not a niche, but the way we all invest

By Alastair Rhodes, CEO of BayTrust and Chair of the IIN AC.