BlueMark^(*1), a leading provider of independent verification and market intelligence for the sustainable and impact investing market, and the Social Impact Management Initiative (SIMI), a general incorporated foundation based in Japan, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to formalize their partnership. While BlueMark and SIMI have maintained an informal working relationship to date, this new agreement will strengthen their collaboration in the following areas to help ensure that the sustainable and impact investing market in Japan scales with integrity:

・Raise awareness about the importance of quality impact measurement and management (IMM) in impact investing, sustainable finance and corporate management, to introduce and share best practices.
・Share the latest global developments and insights in IMM with Japanese stakeholders, while also communicating the state of IMM in Japan to the English-speaking impact investing market.
・Highlight the role of independent verification services in sustainable and impact investing and provide an overview of their practicalities.
・Organize webinars and other information forums as needed.

Christina Leijonhufvud, CEO of BlueMark, said, “To address today’s most urgent social and global challenges, impact investing must scale—and do so with integrity. Strong impact measurement and management (IMM) practices are essential to ensuring the credibility of the market as it grows. We’re proud to formalize this partnership with SIMI to foster mutual learning and exchange of IMM principles and best practices between Japan and the global impact investing community.”

SIMI President Katsuji Imata said, “The understanding and practice of IMM in impact finance in Japan is rapidly advancing, and our partnership with BlueMark will accelerate the introduction of their insights to Japan. Together, we hope to support the dissemination of IMM good practices from Japan to promote the exchange of ideas and peer learning with the global impact investing community.”

(*1) BlueMark, a leading provider of independent verification and market intelligence for the sustainable and impact investing market, was established in 2020 with a mission to strengthen trust in the field. By delivering independent, incisive verification services, BlueMark enables the market to scale with integrity. Its offerings include both ratings and verification services, as well as market intelligence solutions.