Social impact metrics, cyptocurrencies and the future of ESG in asset management
We speak to Olinga Ta'eed, Director, Centre for Citizenship, Enterprise & Governance about social impact metrics and the cryptocurrencies in asset management.
How do we unlock and create a market for social progress?
There are two key elements required. In business if you can’t capture the value then you can’t bill it; so you have to be able to measure it, and then transact it. Since 2011 we have been at the forefront of measurement of non-financial soft intangible assets. Essentially we digitise non-financial value, we turn sentiment into financial value and we do it using Fast Data. For example, certain listed companies we track their financial value (stock price) next to their social value every 10 seconds on a ticker. The Centre for Citizenship, Enterprise and Governance, the world’s leading Think Tank on the Movement of Value (cceg.org.uk), has been supplying metrics all round the world to support legislation that is dependent on non-financial value. This includes in the UK the Social Value Act 2012 (determines who wins public sector procurement contracts), Modern Slavery Act 2015 (determines transparency in supply chains), 5 EU Commissions, and of course the 2% CSR law (2% of gross profits must be given to CSR in India, Indonesia and Mauritius).
How do we do this with the blockchain for good and the internet of value ?
Blockchain is the movement of a digital asset of value from A to B. But love has value, kindness has value, happiness has value, empowerment has value, ambition has value. Since we can digitise that stuff, it means we can use blockchain to transact it. The Internet-of-Value describes a paradigm of Total Value, both Financial Value (eg. represented by Price Earnings Ratio p/e) and Non-Financial Value (Eg. represented by Social Earnings Ratio s/e). The IoV Blockchain for Good which we run is part of our 92,000 membership including 7000 C-Suite Executives of the world’s largest companies. We have developed the Seratio Blockchain that is a 2 token system that represents both kinds of value simultaneously and can be transacted. This tokenisation of Total Value is an important milestone in GAP (general accounting principles) and has been described in detail elsewhere www.seratio-coins.world.
What is the role of cryptocurrencies with values in a circular economy based on values?
Currency and values are always connected. Most people would not accept Klu-Klux-Klan Coins as it would be an affront to their values, and in any case where would they spend it if they have no surrounding community of KKK members? We have already secured large, vibrant, cohesive, transactional communities like Women’s Coin (womenscoin.com), Black Coin, Islamic Coin (ow.ly/9nD3306wUdk), etc that want to move value within their community and those who aligned values. Just those 3 cover the planet but we have also started on secondary communities like Edu Coin (cyberfutures.net), City Coin (cityblockcha.in), Student Coin (studentcoin.uk), etc. Our focus is not on currency speculation but on the circular economy that ensues.
What does the Seratio Token do that is so unique?
Imagine a world where we can attach attributes to our world, make decisions based on them, and then gain benefits from having those positive attributes. We can volunteer and get “social credits” on our mobile, go to Starbucks and part pay with them, walk down Google Street and decide which shop to visit depending on their ethical approaches, shun modern slavery products and embrace those made by happy children, in a happy field by happy cows. Imagine an impact investment world where the financial transaction is contingent on the impact achieved through a smart contract. The Seratio Token can do all that and much more.
What does this mean for investment management above and beyond impact investing? How will it aid equity and fixed income investment?
Impact and Faith investment are now pretty well in a cul-de-sac. Impact investors negatively invest – we all know what NOT to invest in (arms, nuclear, child labour, etc) but it has not moved forward the social agenda in a positive manner. The ability to move forward the social mission through a financial transaction that carries the social values is a first. If you can capture non-financial value then you can also trade it. For example, in April 2018 we will be launching our non-financial token, the ‘Microshare’, on a Swiss trading platform pari-pasu with commodities, fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies, gold, land, diamonds, etc. In essence, we can transact love, hope, goodwill, CSR, ambition, education, etc for gold or diamonds. It’s a shocking idea. We consider this as a beachhead for social innovation in the financial world.