Economy and finance

The Wall Street bull representing economy and finance needs to move from hoarding funds to releasing them to achieve sustainable development. This chapter introduces the second changemaker, lays out the case for economy and finance to achieve the SDGs and introduces how private companies are drinking the SDG Kool-Aid. It reviews the role of private capital in filling the funding gap, including in biodiversity and agriculture. The incremental nature of finance and the push to minimize risk in development financing are discussed. Two case studies are presented, one focused on a new investment fund for agribusinesses in Africa and the other on the rise of impact investors who want to achieve an environmental and social effect with their money.