Family Offices Increase in Sophistication, Embracing Systems-Level Impact Investing: SFi Impact Week Survey 2026

HONG KONG, Aug. 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey of 121^{^} family office representatives and asset owners from across Asia Pacific and beyond finds that investor sentiment towards sustainable investment remains positive, with a sharp rise in the share of family offices allocating over 50% of their portfolio to impact and ESG strategies this year. However, that renewed conviction is not translating into broader diversification; capital is concentrating around a narrower set of established sectors and geographies, as investors lean towards co-investing with existing partners on practical, well-understood deployment routes rather than experimentation. This same instinct shows up in the community's top-ranked challenge, which reflects investors do not lack appetite to deploy capital, but have difficulty sourcing curated products and finding trusted co-investment partners.

Over 86% of respondents allocate some of their portfolio to sustainable investments, on par with previous years – but the shape of that commitment has changed, with capital shifting towards higher concentration and conviction in sustainable assets. 27% of respondents have put more than half their portfolio into impact and ESG strategies, up from 17% in 2025. Further affirming this trend, the proportion of investors materially exposing their portfolio to impact (defined as allocating more than 10% of their portfolio to impact) grew to 58%.

When assessing financial performance, 54% of respondents selected the new option "too early to assess," reflecting the long-dated and still-deploying nature of many impact portfolios. Meanwhile, 36% of respondents said returns are in line or exceeded expectations, reflecting a positive tilt in portfolio performance.

"Family offices aren't just committing to impact – they're polarising around it," said Katy Yung, CEO of Sustainable Finance Initiative. "Those who are in, are going all in, whilst a new wave of impact investors are still testing the waters. What's disappearing is the middle ground – and that tells you something about how conviction is hardening at the top. In a more volatile market, that clarity matters."

Thematic Shift Towards Food and Agriculture and WASH

One of the most notable shifts this year is thematic. Food and agriculture now ranks first, consistently placing in the top two, with WASH (Water, Sanitation & Hygiene) – expanded this year to include oceans – in second place, and new energy and mobility and healthcare also remaining near the top tier. Conversations we hear on the ground suggest the renewed interest in food and agriculture is increasingly shifting upstream towards farm productivity, precision agriculture, biological inputs, and AI-enabled decision tools, whilst consumer-facing downstream categories have seen more valuation pressure. Heightened geopolitical risk to global food security, following disruption to key grain-exporting regions, has sharpened this focus further. Meanwhile, nature-based solutions, biodiversity and regenerative practices, last year's top theme, fell to seventh place – though part of that apparent decline may simply reflect investor interest migrating towards oceans, now folded into the WASH category for the first time.

Maturing Asia Pacific Market Move Towards Systems Investing

Geographically, Asia Pacific remains dominant, cited in 43% of votes, with North America and Europe overtaking  Africa, which moved to fourth place in investor focus. Whilst the reasons for changing geographic focus are likely multifaceted, factors such as distance, market familiarity and deal-execution considerations may influence how readily APAC-based family offices convert interest into active allocation.

Perhaps the clearest sign of the market's maturing is in approach: systems investing (31%) has overtaken opportunistic allocation for the first time, and combined with total portfolio approaches (27%), more than half of respondents now manage impact through a systems-level lens rather than a standalone carve-out.

Challenges Remain on Access and Exit

Yet appetite continues to outpace access. Identifying quality deal flow with viable exit options remains investors' top challenge for the third consecutive year, cited in 26% of votes, ahead of finding suitable investment products (19%) and like-minded co-investment peers (18%, up sharply from 11%). The bottleneck in this market lies not in motivation but supply: investors aren't short on appetite to deploy capital, they're short on curated products and trusted partners. That is exactly the gap SFi has focused on narrowing, working alongside partners globally to help early-stage ideas take shape as deployable, investable opportunities.

On asset allocation, a hands-on approach remains preferred, led by venture capital/private equity (19%) and direct investments (18%), whilst evergreen structures – a new category this year – drew 9% of responses, reflecting growing appetite for more liquid, longer-dated vehicles outside traditional lock-up periods.

Outer Space Allocation Requires Credible SDG Link

A new question this year tested a more unconventional frontier: whether commercial outer space belongs in an impact portfolio. Views were split – 40% called it a vanity play diverting capital from proven solutions, whilst 36% would consider it only with a credible link to SDG outcomes or existing climate-monitoring infrastructure. Just 4% are actively allocating today.

"From 2025's early signals to this year's sharper, more demanding data, our findings reflect a community that has crossed a threshold," Yung concluded. "Impact investing has clearly earned its place in a serious portfolio. What our community is working through now, with greater urgency than ever, is how to find more of the right deals, in the right structures, with the right partners. That is exactly the work SFi exists to support."

For the full 2026 Summit programme and recap, please visit here.

For the SFi Impact Week Survey 2026 infographic, please visit here.

About Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFi)

Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFi) is a global platform designed by and for Asia Pacific-focused private investors and changemakers. SFi advises and collaborates with family offices and asset owners to bridge the gap between profit and purpose, mobilising private capital to drive measurable global change.

Media Contact:

Lisa Fong
Sustainable Finance Initiative
Email: lisafong@sustainablefinance.hk

source: Sustainable Finance Initiative