Community-level change at market-rate returns

The Te Puna Hapori Infrastructure Fund is a community-driven infrastructure debt fund that is all about supporting local community stakeholders to decrease deprivation. The fund has been designed and built in close consultation with the communities themselves and can extend across any regional area of New Zealand. The target sectors include disability housing, affordable rental housing, inclusive retirement housing, healthcare property, education property and water infrastructure and others. 

There is a strong correlation between distance from urban centres and indicators of deprivation across health and wellbeing of New Zealanders. These areas outside of the urban centres lag behind in wellbeing as measured by NZ living standards framework (LSF) and UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)s.  On average between 15-20% of the New Zealand population are rated ‘Low’ by the LSF across well-being domains of the LSF.  More than 20% of the population is rated low in key targeted impact areas, including housing, health and social connections.   Market intelligence is also signalling that there has and will continue to show a significant increase in community needs amidst the challenges of the Covid virus the world is facing.

Often Community-minded stakeholders struggle with being financed by traditional banks.  This is where the Te Puna Hapori Infrastructure Fund is providing a blended debt funding solution in partnership with industry and community leaders in New Zealand. The Fund’s strategy is driven by an understanding of the needs of the community and the importance enabling the community stakeholders the flexibility they require to meet the growing needs of their communities.

Impact investment manager Brightlight has teamed up with prominent New Zealand investment professional David Woods as the first independent Director of the new community infrastructure fund to work with the local community to lead the way with supporting the communities via the fund. Brightlight has assembled a team of investment professionals tasked with solving this problem with the aim to shift more capital for the provision of essential services such as health, education, housing and aged care.

David Woods is a prominent figure in the impact investing community.  He holds Director roles with New Zealand Green Investment Finance, and the New Zealand National Advisory Board for Impact Investing.  “I am delighted to be a part of the Te Puna Hapori Fund project.  This is a truly commercial scale impact fund opportunity that will deliver solid risk adjusted market rate returns for investors alongside meaningful and measurable benefit to marginalised communities around the country.”

David is affectionally known as the grandfather of Impact Investing in New Zealand.  David deeply understands the needs of the New Zealand communities and Impact Investing.  David believes that the Te Puna Hapori Fund is a solution to many of the needs of the communities of New Zealand, and why he has made the decision to come onboard as the first independent Director of the Fund. 

David says “ the Te Puna Hapori Fund is what the New Zealand community needs right now.”

As independent research firm BondAdvisor note in their report on the Fund, “The Fund provides exposure to a market that was previously inaccessible.  Through active market origination, the Fund’s strategy attempts to leverage impact as a means to generate profit and reduce risk, through funding market inefficiencies caused by both capital and social deficiencies”.  BondAdvisor gave their view that the Te Puna Hapori Fund represents “conviction exposure to impact led, community infrastructure lending in New Zealand.”

Managing Director for Brightlight Group, Sam Richards, highlighted the unique origination approach of the Fund, “We have a unique opportunity to empower the voice of community agencies to inform the investment strategy. Our strategy of providing flexible debt financing to enable delivery of essential infrastructure is filling a capital gap in the market identified by our community partners”

Brightlight Head of Investment Solutions Simba Marekera noted that, “we have investees lined up and we are ready to go.  As soon as we complete our capital raise we can call on capital to activate a wide range of much needed community infrastructure at a critical time in the market where indicators of deprivation are unfortunately increasing due to the impact of COVID19”

Te Puna Hapori is a nationwide community infrastructure impact fund and will invest from Northland region right through to Southland.  Initial capital raise is anticipated to close by end of 2020 with first investments to be made in 2021.

Brightlight continues to expand its activities in the New Zealand market and will shortly be announcing its New Zealand based Country Manager.

David Woods, Sam Richards and Simba Marekera are available for interview.  

Please contact the team at marketing@brightlightimpact.com