Impact investing must be differentiated from ESG investing, argues FT contributor Wendy Abt, founder of WPA and a board director of Innovations for Poverty Action. An impact investment should only be defined by two characteristics: Its ability to positively impact on the lives of poor people and the ability of a company to make a risk adjusted return, she argues.  “A clear line between ESG and true impact investing is important because products that have a direct impact on poverty are rare, plus the investments are unusually illiquid, volatile, and require lots of long-term capital.” ESG investing, she says, “does not operate under these constraints.”