This report summarizes the ninth year of operations for Living Cities Blended Catalyst Fund’s (“BCF” or the “Fund”) activities, from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024 (FY24).
We thank you for your support and are excited to explore and share lessons learned as our portfolio continues to mature. The BCF portfolio is a collection of investments that work to test innovative investment approaches to address the racial wealth gap, shift power within capital systems, and achieve better outcomes for all people in U.S. cities. The latter half of the BCF investments focus on seeking to close the racial wealth gap. While excited about the progress the portfolio makes against this mission, we acknowledge headwinds and rollback of DEI initiatives across the broader economy. 1 The Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances shows that the racial wealth gap in the U.S. increased between 2019 and 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic despite overall Black wealth increasing.2 Given these macroeconomic trends, we believe Living Cities and the Catalyst Family of Funds to be positioned to continue showcasing overlooked investment opportunities that seek to close the racial wealth gap.
For the thirteenth consecutive year, the Living Cities Catalyst Funds were named to the ImpactAssets 50 (IA50), an impact investing list featuring fund managers that deliver social, environmental, and financial returns. The IA50 is the most recognized free database of impact investment fund managers. Living Cities has been included in the IA50 every year since its inception.3
Footnotes:
1. Three things to know about corporate DEI rollbacks (ft.com)
2. Black wealth is increasing, but so is the racial wealth gap (brookings.edu)
3. On March 11, 2024, Living Cities was recognized on the ImpactAssets IA50 list for information provided as of December 31, 2023. Inclusion on the list should not be deemed an endorsement and is not indicative of an fund manager’s performance. The IA 50 Review Committee selects firms according to a set of criteria developed to ensure that the list includes a diverse set of firms with experience in the field, scale in terms of AUM and investor base, commitment to impact and representing a range of approaches, asset classes and impact areas. For more information on the selection process, visit https://impactassets.org/ia-50/.
