By Eric V. Trappen

Among the many offerings provided to clients today, financial services professionals are increasingly being called upon to help clients achieve their charitable goals as part of their overall investment strategy. One exciting area that is gaining traction in helping to accomplish these dual objectives is impact investing. This approach blends the principles of venture capital with philanthropic goals, so individuals achieve both social and financial returns on their contributions.

Meeting Needs and Making a Difference

Business-savvy, socially minded individuals are looking to make a real difference with their donations. But they want assurance that their funding will be used for the purpose they intend, such as generating social and/or environmental change. Cognigence, a 501(c)(3) company, can help make sure their contributions matter.¹

Cognigence helps socially conscious individuals invest their funds in areas that are connected to their values or that promote issues that they are passionate about improving. Funding through Cognigence supports research, programs, and technology that benefit all people, regardless of origin, race, politics, religion, or status by providing an improved quality of life on both the micro and macro levels.

If it is important to your clients that they feel confident that their fully tax-deductible donations will be invested with those who support their causes and can achieve far-reaching effects, Cognigence can help. At Cognigence, we use as little as 25 cents per dollar on operations. We also tell clients exactly where their money is being used, and we use the Harvard social return on investment (SROI) scale to measure and share their contribution’s impact.

Realizing Invaluable Returns

Unlike conventional charitable giving, Cognigence’s impact donation model provides your clients with an opportunity to not only make meaningful charitable donations to causes they support, but also to receive a possible financial return on their contributions. At Cognigence, we leverage conscience, passion, and competencies through venture philanthropy and social impact.

Critical Causes

Impact investing helps bring much needed funding to companies and organizations that need investors to fuel their work, and socially conscious donors can make a huge difference when they turn to Cognigence.

Clients can donate funds among multiple critical causes. We currently focus on areas that have a large financial burden on the health care system and that improve the quality of life for those across the globe. Specifically, contributions help Cognigence support the following:

• MedTech – Investments support enabling technologies that improve the health care ecosystem and provide better patient outcomes.
• Cancer Treatments – We fund innovations to help reduce the global cancer burden, promote greater equity in treatment, and help improve people’s lives.
• Diabetes Care – We invest in organizations developing solutions to reduce the burden of diabetes on our health care systems and improve the lives of individuals with the disease.
• Autoimmune Diseases – We prioritize research to reduce complications from autoimmune diseases, increase quality of life, and cut costs for treatment.
• Green Earth – We invest contributions in innovations that combat climate change and make use of untapped resources.
• Relief for the Underprivileged – These investments provide resources to improve the lives of the more than 700 million in extreme poverty globally.

As a financial professional, you can help your socially responsible clients realize the dual benefit of impact investing. Learn more about Cognigence and its unique impact investment model.

¹ Cognigence is a unique platform that improves upon the existing charity/giving model to provide donors with commitment, transparency, impact, and gifting success. Our people have different capabilities and have had different experiences in life, but we have found a common interest in trying to make the world a better place for everyone.

Eric V. Trappen works in business advisory and private equity and is a principal with Perspicacity Group. Learn more at Ericvtrappen.com. 

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^{Statements of fact and opinion are the authors’ responsibility alone and do not imply an opinion on the part of the PICPA's officers or members. The information contained herein does not constitute accounting, legal, or professional advice. For actionable advice, you must engage or consult with a qualified professional.}