A financial adviser or financial advisor, is a professional who renders financial services to individuals, businesses and governments. This can involve investment advice, which may include pension planning, and/or advice on life insurance and other insurances such as income protection insurance, critical illness insurance etc., and/or advice on mortgages.

Ideally, the financial advisor helps the client maintain the desired balance of investment income, capital gains, and acceptable level of risk by using proper asset allocation. Financial advisers use stock, bonds, mutual funds, real estate investment trusts (REITs), options, futures, notes, and insurance products to meet the needs of their clients. Many financial advisers receive a commission payment for the various financial products that they broker, although "fee-based" planning is becoming increasingly popular in the financial services industry.

A further distinction should be made between "fee-based" and "fee-only" advisers. Fee-based advisers often charge asset based fees but may also collect commissions. Fee-only advisers do not collect commissions or referral fees paid by other product or service providers.

Some investment advisors only charge a fee based on the assets managed for the client. Typically they charge about 1.0 to 1.5% per year to make the investment decisions for the client. They do not collect commissions.

Financial Adviser is also the name of a weekly trade newspaper for independent financial advisers in the UK. Owned by The Financial Times, its editorial offices are in London.

Role

The main purpose of a financial adviser is to assist clients in the planning and arrangement of their financial affairs, such as savings, retirement provisions, tax treatment and wills. To ensure ethical practices, financial advisers must understand a client's financial situation as well as their need for financial stability. Finance can be complicated and any adviser has responsibilities ethically to see that a client's risk is minimized, and monetarily, that money is maximized within the established risk boundaries.

Retirement planning

One of the major services that financial advisers offer is retirement planning. A financial adviser should have knowledge of budgeting, forecasting, taxation, asset allocation, and financial tools and products to establish realistic goals and the strategy by which to reach them. In the United States, this will include the use of several investment tools such as 401(k)/403(b) Roth account(s), Individual Retirement Accounts/Roth IRAs, mutual funds, stocks, bonds and CDs.

The financial adviser determines what percentage of the available income is necessary—taking into account tax liabilities, expected inflation, and projected return on investment—to meet a minimum balance by the client's target age of retirement. This is a fairly straightforward calculation, and many automated tools do this. The financial adviser's greatest contribution is asset allocation: determining how to maximize the return on investment while satisfying the client's risk tolerance.

Investing

Financial advisers may help their clients invest for both long and short term goals. It is the financial adviser's duty to determine the clients' goals and risk tolerance and then to recommend appropriate investments. Generally, a long time horizon allows for the advisor to recommend more volatile investments with potentially greater risks and rewards. Such investments include direct investment in stocks or through collective investment products such as mutual funds and unit investment trusts/unit trusts.

If the client has shorter term goals, the adviser should recommend less volatile investments with shorter time spans. Such investments could include cash deposits, certificates of deposit, and short term bonds. While these types of investment generally have lower returns there is less volatility and there is less likelihood of losing principal capital. Although short-term investments can guard against loss of capital, their value can be eroded by inflation over longer periods of time.

Compensation

Fee-only

As defined by the review materials for the Certified Financial Planner exam and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, fee-only financial advisors, such as an investment advisor, are compensated solely by the client, typically achieved through a combination of hourly fees (including retainers), financial planning fees, and asset management fees. Neither advisors nor affiliates may receive commissions, rebates, awards, finder’s fees, bonuses or other forms of compensation from others as a result of a client’s implementation of the individual’s planning recommendations. The fee-only model of compensation reduces the potential for conflicts of interest between the advisor and the client in that the advisor is not beholden to insurance companies, particular investments, and other financial companies.

A clear distinction should be made between brokers, who often refer to themselves as "fee-based" (receiving both fees and commissions) and "fee-only" (someone who never receives compensation or incentives from a third party.)

A fee-only advisor may reduce conflicts of interest such as:

advising a client to buy products and make investments when holding cash and other liquid assets may have been a more suitable recommendation at that time.

an incentive to generate commissions through the unnecessary buying and/or selling of securities (also known as churning).

an incentive to convert non-cash assets such as real estate and collectibles to cash and securities so that the advisor can generate a commission.

an incentive to make recommendations that pay higher sales commissions to the advisor when a less expensive alternative may have been available.

Commission-based

Many financial advisers receive a commission payment for the various financial products that they broker, although "fee-based" planning is becoming increasingly popular in the financial services industry.

Online-only

A new class of services that deliver guidance regarding financial planning are emerging, offering low cost financial advice through the sponsorship of HR department of employers. Companies like HelloWallet are offering low cost financial advice through the employer. These services are also delivered to the poor through donation of HelloWallet as well as philanthropic organizations.

History

Much of today's model for what a financial advisor is stemmed from IDS Financial Services, which later became known as American Express Financial Corporation (AEFC) after the company was sold by Alleghany Corporation, and later became Ameriprise. At IDS, a young rep named James Tausz was a top-ranked broker and served as the basis of inspiration for the company's model of "Financial Planning for a Fee," which IDS VP Vint Lewis popularized by training thousands of IDS stock brokers. Today, the concept of a "Financial Advisor" is widely popular. Before the IDS model, almost all stock brokers worked on commissions only.

Qualifications

United States

There are three types of licenses for individual professionals who typically hold themselves out as Financial advisors: Investment Advisor Representative, Registered Representative (also known as a "Stock Broker"), Insurance Producer. The practice of investment advice, the sale of investment securities and the sale of insurance products are regulated and therefore an individual must pass an exam, affiliate with a firm and register with one or more states before conducting business. A Financial advisor may hold any combination of these licenses depending on the nature of their financial practice. Similar to the term Financial advisor, the terms wealth manager, financial consultant and financial planner do not refer to a specific license or designation. These terms are typically select by individuals to help describe the nature of their financial practice.

The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation, the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU), The Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor (CRPC), Registered Financial Consultant (RFC) and the Masters of Science in Financial Services (MSFS) are all advanced specializations that require elaborate course work to obtain. These professional designations are issued by organizations such as the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute, the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, and the College for Financial Planning.

In the United States, a firm registers as an investment advisor with the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) or a state, depending on the amount of assets that receive continuous and regular supervisory or management services (Assets Under Management, or "AUM"). For a firm to register with the SEC, it must have over $25 million of AUM at the time of registration or within 120 days of the effective date of the registration. If a firm has less than $25 million of AUM and doesn’t anticipate having $25 million or more within 120 days of the effective date of the registration, then it must register with the individual state(s) as an investment advisor. If a firm has $30 million or more of AUM, then it must register with the SEC. Firms with more than $25 million and less than $30 million of AUM can be registered with either the state or SEC. The SEC’s definition of AUM is outlined in the Form ADV Part 1 and should be thoroughly reviewed and consulted prior to beginning the registration process.

Certain multi-state advisors may also register with the SEC, as well as certain Internet based advisors. If an advisor does not qualify for registration with the SEC, the adviser must register with the states where it maintains an office, as well as each state where its clients are located. There are de minimus exemptions in most states, typically exempting from registration those advisors with less than 6 clients, but the exemption varies from state to state.

Common examples of investment advisors include pension fund managers, mutual fund managers, trust fund managers and also individuals, partnerships, or corporations that have registered under the Act, and those who fall within certain exemptions. Stock brokers (known as "registered representatives" under U.S. federal law and licensed in the various states) are not necessarily (and normally are not) Registered Investment Advisors.

In general, under U.S. law, investment advisors owe their clients an ongoing fiduciary duty to provide full and complete disclosure of all fees, conflicts of interest, and if so authorized, to exercise discretion in selecting investments with only their clients' best interests in mind.

In many cases, a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) is a corporation or partnership while the person actually providing the advice is an investment advisor representative (IAR) of the advisor organization. Investment advisor representatives and individuals registered as investment advisors are sometimes certified as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) practitioner by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. or a Chartered Financial Analyst(CFA) holding a charter from the CFA Institute after they have passed the appropriate examinations, have agreed to abide by a code of ethics, and have maintained the required continuing education credits. The CFP and CFA credentials are not, however, required for registration as a Registered Investment Advisor.

The registration process to become an investment advisor is becoming increasingly complex, with examination requirements, books and record retention and increased state regulation of smaller investment advisors.

Regulation

In the United States, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) regulates and oversees the activities of more than 5,050 brokerage firms, approximately 172,050 branch offices and more than 663,050 registered securities representatives. A financial adviser or stock broker should be licensed to provide any consultation on investment in securities. Typical licenses needed to promote the sale of stocks are the: Series 7 (General Securities exam), Series 63 (State Securities exam), and Series 65 or 66 Uniform Investment Adviser Law Exam. Generally, any adviser who charges a fee for investment advice would need to also have the Series 65 or 66 license. Thus, anyone can call themselves a financial planner (although care must be taken not to be confused with a Certified Financial Planner), but they would still need FINRA licenses to provide advice for a fee or be registered as an investment adviser with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the USA. Anyone in the business of providing financial advice can call themselves a Financial Advisor. There currently isn't any regulation on the use of this title. To charge a fee for advice, one must pass the FINRA Series 65 test—The Uniform Investment Adviser Law Examination. To be a "Registered Investment Adviser" (RIA) or "Investment Adviser Representative" (IAR), one must pass the FINRA Series 65 exam or both of the FINRA Series 7 and Series 66 exams. Many brokerage firms still claim an exemption for their employees who sell fee based products and services.

Canada

The financial advisor role in Canada is varied. Most financial advisors carry either a life insurance license or a securities license. The life insurance license is obtained through successful completion of the life license qualification program, except in Quebec, where licensing is completed through l'autorite des marchiers financiers. There are three distinct securities licenses available. Completion of the Canadian Securities Course allows the sale of most types of securities, including stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. More advanced licensing is required for the sale of derivatives and commodities. Completion of a mutual funds course allows the advisor to sell mutual funds only, excluding certain types of very specialized funds. The third possible license is the exempt securities license.

In all cases, licensing requires the support of a dealer or insurer. It is also mandatory for advisors to carry Errors and Omissions Insurance. Technically, the term financial advisor refers to a securities licensed individual who provides investment advice to retail clients. However, there is little regulatory control exercised over use of the term, and, as such, many insurance brokers, insurance agents, securities brokers, and others identify themselves as financial advisors.

Many financial advisors in Canada are also financial planners. While there are numerous financial planning designations, the most common is the Certified Financial Planner designation. There is no regulation, outside of Quebec, of the term "Financial Planner".

United Kingdom

There are three main bodies awarding qualifications for financial advisers in the UK. The main one is the Chartered Insurance Institute, which offers professional financial services qualifications all the way from beginner to degree levels. The IFS School of Finance offers alternative courses/qualifications in certain specialist areas such as mortgages and equity release. The Institute of Financial Planning offers the Certified Financial Planner.

In the United Kingdom investment advice is given either by a financial advisor or a stock broker.

Financial advisors need to pass an exam and receive a Certificate in Financial Planning (previously the Financial Planning Certificate) or the Certificate for Financial Advisers, and also authorised by the Financial Services Authority, a UK government qango that must be satisfied the advisor is a “fit and proper person” before they may practice.

Financial advisors are either tied, multi-tied, independent, or fee-only.

As the classifications suggest, tied advisors can only recommend 'financial products' marketed by the company they represent. Typically that company employs them but in some cases they work for that organisation under a type of self-employed contract that usually precludes other paid work.

Multi-tied agents perform a similar role, except they represent a number of different companies. This is sometimes referred to as the panel system. Tied and multi-tied advisors are nearly always rewarded via commission, though in some cases (and if the advisor is employed rather than self employed) commission may be expressed in notional terms to justify a salary.

An Independent Financial Adviser must offer advice on all 'financial products' on the market (which carry commission) and, in addition, must offer clients the choice of paying a fee for advice about a product or products, rather than being remunerated commission from the financial institution that is promoting the product.

A Fee-only financial adviser designs bespoke solutions, and often by investing directly removes marketing commissions and charges from the costs that clients would otherwise pay. Fee-only advisory firms tend to accept a professional duty of care.

In the UK there has been much debate in the media about the effectiveness of financial advisors, especially in situations where there is perceived bias toward 'financial products' that carry commission.

''Best advice'' is a concept which was never more than a heading in the FSA / PIA / NASDIM regulations (and is now withdrawn in favour of the 'appropriate' standard) and which refers to the general obligation under Contract Law (Agency) that a broker has to find the correct 'financial product' to match a client 'need'. A tied or multi-tied advisor must recommend the most appropriate financial product within their company, even if a more appropriate product is available in the market place. An Independent Financial Adviser must recommend an appropriate financial product in the market place, even if a better solution is available outside the universe of commission-paying 'financial products'.

In the UK many believe impartial advice can be obtained only by consulting an independent financial advisor. Others believe it can only be obtained by consulting an advisor that never accepts commission.

Republic of Ireland

The QFA ("qualified financial adviser") designation is awarded to those who pass the Professional Diploma in Financial Advice and agree to comply with the ongoing "continuous professional development" (CPD) requirements. It is the recognised benchmark designation for financial advisers working in retail financial services. The qualification, and attaching CPD programme, meets the "minimum competency requirements" (MCR) specified by the Financial Regulator, for advising on and selling five categories of retail financial products:

Savings, investments and pensions,

Housing loans and associated insurances,

Consumer credit and associated insurances,

Shares, bonds and other investment instruments, and,

Life assurance protection policies.

New Zealand

The National Certificate in Financial Services [Financial Advice] [Level 5] is currently being introduced in New Zealand. All Individuates and registered legal entities providing financial services must be registered as a RFSP( Registered Financial Service Provider ) Their Directors, retail and sales staff are required to gain the national certificate.

The New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) in conjunction with industry groups via the ETITO administers a qualifications frame work for the qualification. Registrations and examinations are conducted by the ETITO. All Financial Advisers are required to register with the ETITO by March 31, 2011

The Qualifications Framework consists of a core set of competencies sets, A B C followed by 2 electives covering specialist areas such as Insurance and Residential Property Lending. Certain NZQA approved qualifications such as an Accountancy degree may exempt student from competency set A NZQA approved training in the certificate is offered by the New Zealand Open Polytechnic as well as several other accredited organizations

See also

Collective investment schemes

Socially responsible investing

References

External links

10 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Financial Planner

AAFM American Academy of Financial Management

IAIA International Association of Investment Advisers

AIFA Association of Independent Financial Advisers - UK Trade body

FSA website Financial Services Authority (UK)

IAA Investment Adviser Association

NAIFA National Association of Insurance & Financial Advisors

SEC IA Search SEC Database of US Registered Investment Advisers

SECLaw.com Financial Advisor Legal Information Center

€FPA €uropean Financial Planning Association

Category:Finance Category:Investment Category:People in finance

ca:Assessor financer de:Finanzberater es:Asesor financiero fr:Conseiller en gestion de patrimoine lt:Finansų patarėjas no:Økonomisk rådgiver

Coordinates	29°25′″N98°30′″N
name	Melinda Gates
birth name	Melinda Ann French
birth date	August 15, 1964
birth place	Dallas, Texas, U.S.
residence	Medina, Washington, U.S.
citizenship	United States
alma mater	Duke University (B.S. & M.B.A.)
occupation	Co-Chair, operator of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, philanthropist, and formerly unit manager
spouse	Bill Gates (m. 1994)
religion	Roman Catholic
children	Jennifer Katharine Gates - (b. 1996) Rory John Gates - (b. 1999) Phoebe Adele Gates - (b. 2002)
website	Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Home Page }}

Melinda Ann French (born August 15, 1964), later known as Melinda French Gates, is an American philanthropist and wife of Bill Gates. She is the co-founder and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a former unit manager for several Microsoft products such as Publisher, Microsoft Bob, Encarta, and Expedia.

Childhood and career

Gates was born in Dallas, Texas to Raymond Joseph French, Jr., an engineer, and Elaine Agnes Amerland, a homemaker. Gates was raised as a Roman Catholic and attended St. Monica Catholic School, where she was the top student in her class year. She graduated as valedictorian from Ursuline Academy of Dallas in 1982. Gates earned a bachelor's degree in computer science and economics from Duke University in 1986 and an MBA from Duke's Fuqua School of Business in 1987, where she was a member of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority.

Shortly thereafter, she joined Microsoft and participated in the development of many of Microsoft’s multimedia products including Publisher, Microsoft Bob, Encarta, and Expedia.

Awards and recognition

In December 2005, she and her husband, along with musician Bono, were named by ''Time'' as Persons of the Year. The Gates received the Spanish Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation on May 4, 2006 in recognition of their world impact through charitable giving.

She was ranked #40 in ''Forbes'' magazine list of the 100 Most Powerful Women in 2008, #24 in 2007, and #12 in 2006.

In November 2006, she and her husband were awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle for their philanthropic work around the world in the areas of health and education, particularly in Mexico, and specifically in the program "Un país de lectores". On June 12, 2009, Melinda and Bill Gates received honorary degrees from the University of Cambridge. Their benefaction of $210 million in 2000 set up the Gates Cambridge Trust, which funds postgraduate scholars from outside the UK to study at the University.

Melinda Gates has also donated over 10 million dollars to her high school Ursuline Academy of Dallas. She is one of the major donors of their ''Facing the Future'' Campaign and was honored in their dedication ceremony on May 7, 2010.

Marriage and family

In 1994, she married Bill Gates in a private ceremony held in Lanai, Hawaii after the couple met at a Microsoft press event while she visited Manhattan. Shortly thereafter, she left Microsoft to focus on starting and raising her family. Her last position was Microsoft’s General Manager of Information Products. The Gates have three children: daughters Jennifer Katharine Gates (born 1996) and Phoebe Adele Gates (born 2002), and son Rory John Gates (born 1999).

Gates served as a member of Duke University's board of trustees from 1996 to 2003. Gates attends Bilderberg Group conferences and holds a seat on the board of directors of the Washington Post company. She retired from the board of Drugstore.com in August 2006 to spend more time working for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The Gates have donated more than US$24 billion to the Foundation.

References

External links

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Melinda Gates Goes Public, ''Fortune'' magazine, January 4, 2008

Category:1964 births Category:American humanitarians Category:American philanthropists Category:American women in business Category:Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation people Category:Bill Gates Category:Fuqua School of Business alumni Category:Living people Category:Microsoft employees Category:People from Dallas, Texas

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Sir Ronald Cohen (born 1945) is an Egyptian-born British businessman and political figure, known as "the father of British venture capital" and "the father of social investment".

Biography

Early life

Cohen was born in Egypt; his family are Sephardi Jews, originally from Aleppo, Syria, though his mother, Sonia Douek, is English by nationality. In 1957, following the Suez Crisis, Cohen's family was forced to abandon all their assets and flee Egyptian President Nassar's persecution of Jews. The family (including younger brother Andre) moved to England. Though initially speaking only a few words of English, Cohen went to Orange Hill grammar school in North London, now part of Mill Hill County High School where despite describing it as "a school of very doubtful reputation" he excelled.

Cohen won a scholarship to Oxford University, where he became president of the Oxford Union, and earned a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Exeter College. He subsequently attended Harvard Business School, where he was a member of the Harvard Business School Rugby Club.

Business career

After leaving Harvard Business School, Cohen worked as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company in the United Kingdom and Italy. In 1972, along with two former business school colleagues as partners, he founded Apax Partners, one of Britain's first venture capital firms. The company grew slowly at first, but expanded rapidly in the 1990s, becoming Britain's largest venture capital firm, and "one of three truly global venture capital firms". Apax provided startup capital for over 500 companies, and provided money for many others, including AOL, Virgin Radio, Waterstone's, and PPL Therapeutics, the company that cloned Dolly the sheep. In 1996 Cohen helped establish Easdaq, a technology focused stock exchange intended to be the European counterpart to the American Nasdaq. He is the recipient of a Jubilee Award for services to Israeli business, awarded by Benjamin Netanyahu and the BVCA's Lifetime Achievement Award. He is a member of the Harvard Board of Overseers and is also a fellow of Exeter College, Oxford.

In 2002, alongside Jon Moulton, he was the inaugural inductee into the Private Equity Hall of Fame, at the British Venture Capital Association and Real Deals' Private Equity Awards..

Political career

In 1974 Cohen stood as the parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Party in Kensington North, and in 1979 he stood as its European candidate in London West.

In 1996 he switched allegiance to the Labour Party, becoming a supporter of Tony Blair. In 2004, Cohen was the Labour Party's fourth largest financial supporter, after Lord Sainsbury, Sir Christopher Ondaatje and Lord Hamlyn.

Personal

In 1972 Cohen married Carol Belmont; they divorced in 1975. In 1983 he married a second time, to Claire Enders; they divorced in 1986. Cohen married his third wife in 1987, Sharon Harel, daughter of Yossi Harel, the commander of the Holocaust survivors' ship ''Exodus''. Sharon is a film producer, her credits include ''Gosford Park''. They have two children Tamara and Jonathan, and live in London.

Social Investment

Cohen has been a pioneer in the area of social investment. In 2000, he became Chairman of the Social Investment Task Force(SITF). The remit of the SITF was "to set out how entrepreneurial practices could be applied to obtain higher social and financial returns from social investment, to harness new talents and skills, to address economic regeneration and to unleash new sources of private and institutional investment" . The SITF made several recommendations to Government, including that it: (1) introduce Community Investment Tax Relief (CITR); (2) match finance to help set up the first community development venture capital fund; (3) encourage banks to disclose more of their lending activities; (4) to support legislative and regulatory changes to provide greater latitude and encouragement for charitable trusts and foundations to invest in community development finance; and (5) to create the Community Development Finance Association (cdfa) to provide support for community development finance institutions (CDFIs) .

In 2002, he co-founded and became chairman of Bridges Ventures, an innovative sustainable growth investor that delivers both financial returns and social and environmental benefits . Bridges Ventures has raised four successful funds to date: Bridges Ventures Funds I and II, the Bridges Sustainable Property Fund and the Bridges Social Entrepreneurs Fund. The organisation currently has £150million under management . The portfolio includes a number of businesses who invest in regeneration areas or have a sustainable business model. Bridges Ventures has had several successful exits to date, including The Office, Simply Switch, HS Atec and Harlands of Hull .

In 2003, Sir Ronald co-founded the Portland Trust with Sir Harry Solomon, co-founder and former chairman and CEO of Hillsdown Holdings. The aim of Portland Trust is to help develop the Palestinian private sector and relieve poverty through entrepreneurship in Israel. Portland Trust is involved in a number of important initiatives, including the development of financial and economic infrastructure, housing, trade, investment, and entrepreneurship . The Portland Trust has offices in London, Tel Aviv and Ramallah.

In 2005, Sir Ronald chaired the Commission on Unclaimed Assets. which looked into how unclaimed funds from dormant bank accounts could be used to benefit the public. The final recommendation of the Commission was that the funds should be used to a social investment bank be created to help finance charitable and voluntary projects by providing seed capital and loan guarantees.

In 2007 he co-founded and became a non-executive director of Social Finance, a London-based advisory that has worked to create a social investment market in the UK. The organisation provides access to capital, designs social finance interventions and offers advice to investors and social sector entities interested in delivering significant social impact . It has developed the social impact bond which is a financial instrument that is an outcomes-based contract in which public sector commissioners commit to pay for significant improvement in social outcomes for a defined population. Social Finance has set up a pilot social impact bond with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in September 2010 to reduce re-offending amongst male prisoners leaving HMP Peterborough who have served a sentence of less than 12 months. During the Peterborough Prison pilot, experienced social sector organisations, such as St. Giles Trust and The Ormiston Children and Families Trust, will provide intensive support to 3,000 short-term prisoners over a six year period, both inside prison and after release, to help them resettle into the community. If this initiative reduces re-offending by 7.5%, or more, investors will receive from Government a share of the long term savings. If the SIB delivers a drop in re-offending beyond the threshold, investors will receive an increasing return the greater the success at achieving the social outcome, up to a maximum of 13% .

In 2010, Sir Ronald Cohen chaired a review of the work of the SITF in 2010 and published a report titled ''Social Investment: Ten Years On'' which assess the changes that had happened over the last decade in the area of social investment. The report found that there are three specific iniatives that will help define the future of the social investment market in the UK: (1) establishing the infrastructure necessary to create a dynamic market in social investment through initiatives such as the Social Investment Bank; (2) creating new tools to deliver social change through financial instruments such as the social impact bond; (3) engaging the financial sector to invest in disadvantaged areas through the Community Reinvestment Act .

Other charitable involvements

In January 2005, Cohen became a Director of the British Museum.

Cohen is a member of the executive committee of the International Institute of Strategic Studies.

Controversies

Cohen was chairman of Apax at the time of the Apax owned British United Shoe Machinery pension collapse which left 544 workers, many of them long service, without any pension. Collapse followed demerger from USM-Texon and asset transfer between the companies. Pension funds were transferred to the new BUSM scheme two weeks before receivership, and 4 days before a new revaluation was due. MPs Edward Garnier, Patricia Hewitt and Ashok Kumar all called for a proper enquiry, Garnier citing the "mysterious circumstances" under which the pensions “disappeared”, whilst Hewitt said “it is clearly important that such serious allegations are properly investigated.” No new investigation took place leading Kumar to say "I think these people needed flogging. I feel so angry on behalf of decent upright citizens robbed of their basic human rights. ...'These are greedy, selfish, capitalists who live on the backs of others."

Bibliography

References

External links

Category:Knights Bachelor Category:British businesspeople Category:British management consultants Category:British philanthropists Category:McKinsey & Company people Category:Private equity and venture capital investors Category:Presidents of the Oxford Union Category:British Jews Category:Sephardi Jews Category:1945 births Category:Living people Category:Harvard Business School alumni Category:People from London Category:Apax Partners Category:Egyptian Jews Category:Trustees of the British Museum

he:רונלד כהן