Survey on Impact Initiatives and Fundraising Challenges of Impact-Oriented Startups

Overview

This is a joint survey conducted by SIIF and ISA on the current state of impact initiatives and fundraising challenges faced by impact-oriented startups. ## Key Points ### 1. Survey Overview and Scale - Survey Period: February-April 2025 - Target: 206 regular members of Impact Startup Association - Responses: 38 companies (18% response rate) - Multiple-choice questionnaire with 6 sections and 14 questions ### 2. Current State and Potential of Impact Investment - Companies with impact investment ratio of 20% or less: 68.4% - Companies positive about future impact investment: Over 80% - Early-stage companies comprise 50.0%, showing high fundraising needs - Significant room for expansion in impact investment revealed ### 3. Organizational Structure and IMM (Impact Measurement & Management) Initiatives - Reflecting IMM in business improvement: 75.0% - Utilizing for establishing competitive advantage: 52.8% - Management understanding the necessity of IMM: 51.4% - Companies presenting not just data but stories: 51.4% ### 4. Fundraising Challenges - Companies able to demonstrate both financial returns and impact with data: Only 24.3% - Recognizing scarcity of impact investment cases as a challenge: 48.6% - Not knowing how to meet impact investors: 43.2% - Lack of philanthropy and public funding: 43.2% ### 5. Maturity of IMM Implementation - Companies measuring impact: 70.3% - Those without impact goals: 31.4% - Gap exists between practice and systematic approach - Room for improvement in measurement methodology ### 6. Fundraising Sources and Outlook - Venture capital (VC): 62.2% - Angel investors: 32.4% - Bank loans: 21.6% - Traditional funding sources predominate while impact investment penetration remains low ### 7. Why Impact Investment Isn't Progressing - Scarcity of impact investment cases: 48.6% - Insufficient networking opportunities: 43.2% - Lack of pre-seed funding: 43.2% - Overall shortage of funding, not just impact investment: 37.8% ### 8. Gap in Returns Perspective - Companies demonstrating financial returns and impact balance: 24.3% - 75% struggle with demonstrating balance - Need to strengthen data collection and analysis capabilities - Importance of narrative presentation alongside data ### 9. Support System Needs - IMM implementation and improvement support: 51.4% - Industry-specific impact indicators and measurement methods: 45.9% - Policy discussions participation and advocacy: 40.5% - Creating opportunities to meet impact investors: 37.8% ### 10. Future Outlook and Challenges The survey reveals that while many impact startups understand the importance of IMM and are implementing it, few can quantitatively demonstrate the balance between financial returns and impact. This represents the biggest bottleneck in expanding impact investment. There is strong demand for support in IMM methodology establishment, creation of investor meeting opportunities, and systematic ecosystem development.