In the last years, Social Impact Bonds (SIBs) have gained popularity in the impact investing space. A number of scholars and practitioners are debating—in theory and practice—the opportunities, challenges and obstacles of these financial models. Amongst others, social uncertainty evaluation metrics appear as a critical factor for the future development of the SIB market. The present work aims to shed some light on this issue, by realizing a practical application of a model—which is an extension of a framework previously proposed—for social uncertainty evaluation in SIBs. In our exploratory analysis, 34 SIBs were selected for the empirical tests. We combined the Analytic Hierarchical Process (AHP) with the creation of aggregate measure, deriving by suitable indicators at the end of the tree. Our findings open new avenues for future research in the field of uncertainty factors in the SIB landscape. Finally, our results represent a basis for implementing a prediction model for social uncertainty evaluation.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development brought the critical challenge of how private capital can support its new goals—the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—to the attention of finance, business and policy actors. Impact finance instruments, which aim to obtain both financial and positive social/environmental returns simultaneously, can serve as effective institutional mechanisms to support the financing of SDGs. Social impact bonds (SIBs) are part of this emerging field. SIBs represent multi-stakeholder partnerships, built on outcome-based contracts, designed to harness private impact-oriented investors, service providers and public entities to address social or environmental problems. SDG 17 considers partnerships priority instruments for the achievement of SDs targets. This paper provides an exploratory analysis into the field of Social Impact Bonds and aims to (i) understand how such instruments are suitable for involving sustainable economy actors in SDG-based partnerships; (ii) determine the interplay between SIBs and SDGs. In order to address these questions, the article presents a multiple case study that includes a cross case analysis of four SIBs experienced in different social policy areas and different countries. As secondary step, the study matches phases and activities of SDG-based financial partnerships derived from a literature review with those experienced by each SIB case study. The results show that SIBs are fully compliant with SDG-based financial partnership structures derived from the literature, and their architecture reveals a high degree of SDG investment readiness. The originality of the research consists of including SIBs in the analysis of the new financial tools for the achievement of the SDGs, and extending them into the field of partnerships for the Goals, at the center of SDG 17. The paper fills the significant gap in the current research related to the issues of financing sustainable development and financial sector instruments on sustainability.

In the last year, COVID-19 has tested both advanced and developing economies. Within such a context, the global learning crisis is expected to increase due to difficulties in accessing technology or in receiving learning support. Such a huge need, globally identified with the Sustainable Development Goal number 4 (hereafter SDG 4), implies the need for large-scale solutions from governments around the world, especially in terms of dedicated financial resources. In this context, the impact-investing sector offers an innovative financial tool, i.e., impact bonds (IBs), which are widely applied in the education sector, even if their limitations and potentials remain unexplored in academia. Based on these considerations, our work explores whether and how IBs can contribute to funding and improving educational outcomes, with a focus on their potentials in the post-COVID world. This study adopts a qualitative approach by performing a case study analysis of four IBs. Our pilot analysis is based on the following key dimensions: (i) partnerships and contractual arrangements; (ii) financial terms; and (iii) measurement and impact. The results offer interesting insights by deriving a preliminary model on the role of IBs in the post-COVID-19 world.

The debate, especially in policy circles, around the emergence of Social and Sustainable Finance (SSF), depict as ‘paradoxical’ the contrast between SSF as a relatively under-developed field of knowledge and thought, and yet as an area of practice with ‘vast potential’ that is experiencing an ‘explosion’ in practitioner numbers. Such potential, in term of economic and social value that SSF can deliver, is reflected in the increasing of interest within the public policy-making arena in the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). More in detail, it is also underlined by the raising of public and private investment into promoting and supporting them. Within such evolving arena, the exact scale and scope of SSF’s contribution to the improvement of SDGs worldwide is difficult to delineate and measure accurately, but there seems to be universal agreement that SDGs represent an ideal and widespread area where SSF can register a significant growth. However, limited research addressed the marriage of these two fields. The purpose of this research are: i) to shed light on existing academic literature embracing both Social and Sustainable Finance and SDGs issues, ii) explore emerging trends deriving from international policy-making actors, market builders, managers, senior academics and, iii) to identify the main areas for further research focusing on SSF and SDGs. In order to derive a research agenda about such emerging research topic, the study adapts a triangulated approach based on qualitative mixed methods. With such objectives in mind, the study provides an extensive literature review in order to depict a comprehensive overview of existing knowledge considering both SSF and SDGs topics. The analysis is therefore enhanced by the trends identified from literature deriving from public policy-making actors and market-builders as well as from invited commentaries on SSF from senior scholars and managers. Thus, a holistic perspective on SSF experience, useful to identify the main areas for further research on SSF in the sustainability industry, was derived. The study, therefore, aims to provide, through a triangulated analysis of the concepts, frameworks and trends, a detailed understanding of the mechanisms for managing the interplay between SSF and SDGs, by highlight future avenues of research in this field.