Financial policy

The Huisman Foundation is an asset managing foundation not aimed at making a profit. Through a passive investment strategy, aimed at reducing operation and management costs, the capital (corrected for inflation) is maintained.

The Huisman Foundation invests parts of its assets in developing countries, to realize its goals. The investments can be done through publicly traded companies, private equity funds or small business (microfinance institutions), but also directly in local companies. The Huisman Foundation donates the usufruct to non-profit initiatives in African countries south of the Sahara, particularly in terms of the four themes on which the Huisman Foundation focuses. The Huisman Foundation uses positive and negative criteria (or preferred criteria and exclusion criteria). 

When investing the capital the Huisman Foundation grounds its (investment) decisions on expected performance (including the reduction of transaction and management costs), risk spreading and ethical considerations. The ethical considerations are reflected in a number of positive and negative criteria. The positive criteria are preferred criteria. Investments that meet the following criteria will be preferred above other investments:

  • The company focuses its strategy explicitly on developing countries and initiates substantial activities in these countries
  • The company is active in the field of renewable energy
  • The company is active in organic farming and livestock
  • The company develops small scale activities that will benefit the poorer sections of the population of developing countries
  • The company has an active social policies which include attention to employee training and equal opportunities for women and minorities
  • Other commercial activities that will benefit the objectives of the Foundation directly

 

The negative criteria are exclusion criteria. These are:

  • The company is not involved in intensive animal husbandry/cruel factory farming
  • The company is not involved in the use of child labor
  • The Company commits no systematic environmental crimes or other systematic violations of laws and regulations or international conventions
  • The company is not involved in the weapon industry, pornography or gambling industry
  • The company follows some basic rules of good corporate governance, particularly in the areas of fair treatment of (minority) shareholders and a solid financial accountability
  • The company does not actively supports dictatorships that remain in power by flagrant violations of human rights or benefit greatly from the presence of such a regime

Refer to the policy document of the Huisman Foundation for more information on its financial policy.

Some examples of funds in which the Huisman Foundation invests its assets are: TBL Mirror, Mango Capital Fund, Triodos Microfinance Fund and iShares Clean Energy Fund.


The TBL Mirror Fund provides Venture Capital for Kenyan Small and Medium Sized Enterprises. The fund provides equity, hands on entrepreneurial involvement and exposure to an international investor network.

The Mango Capital Fund invests in listed companies in more than 20 emerging markets in the Middle East and Africa (excluding South Africa and Israel).


The Triodos Microfinance Fund invests in microfinance institutions in Latin America, Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe. The fund provides loans and participates in equity.


iShares S & P Global Clean Energy Fund is a tracker on the S & P Global Clean Energy Index and offers exposure to 30 of the largest publicly listed companies around the world that are involved in clean energy related businesses. The index is comprised of a diversified mix of Clean Energy Production and Clean Energy Technology and Equipment Providers companies.

 

In the annual financial report of the Huisman Foundation you will find information on the foundation's (portfolio) investments.