Press Release
Friday, June 14, 2024
NEW YORK, June 14, 2024: Chambers USA 2024 has ranked Morgan Lewis in Band 1 in its inaugural USA: Nationwide: Impact Investing table, recognizing the firm for its “well-respected impact practice” and counsel on “innovative strategies.” In addition to the practice ranking, tax-exempt organizations partner Tomer Inbar was one of only seven lawyers ranked in this category.
Morgan Lewis has a long history of working globally with clients to drive social impact, supporting philanthropies, social enterprises, community and economic development institutions, (emerging) fund managers, institutional investors, foundations and operating nonprofits, family offices and high net worth individuals, incubators and accelerators, and other socially motivated investors. Consisting of more than 50 lawyers across nine practice areas in 10 countries, the firm’s multidisciplinary impact investing practice leverages its broad capabilities to provide clients with a wide range of tailored, customized, and cutting-edge legal strategies and solutions.
The impact team regularly assists impact-driven clients with launching private investment funds, engaging in impact investment transactions, including program and mission-related investments, structuring impact financing and innovative platforms to aggregate and deploy capital for impact purposes, forming management firms, negotiating grants and loans to facilitate impact investing and provide technical support to investee companies, and implementing other objectives within and adjacent to the impact investing space.
This latest accolade comes on the heels of Morgan Lewis and firm client Calvert Impact winning the 2024 Grunin Prize for their work on the initial issuance of asset-backed notes under Calvert Impact’s Cut Carbon Notes program. The annual prize from NYU Law School’s Grunin Center for Law and Social Entrepreneurship is awarded to lawyers working on a project recognized for its innovation, replicability, scalability, and overall impact in the fields of social entrepreneurship, impact investing and sustainable development.
Earlier this year, Morgan Lewis represented Bank of America Securities as sole initial purchaser and structuring agent on a $500 million first-ever in Africa debt-for-nature “blue bond” offering for the Republic of Gabon. The deal earned two recognitions as Capital Markets Deal of the Year at the 2024 IFLR Africa Awards and Ground-Breaking Deal of the Year Award at the Bond, Loans & ESG Capital Markets Africa Awards.