Social Wealth
From natural resources to physical infrastructure, public assets represent a shared inheritance — yet their management is often underthought. JFI’s Social Wealth initiative seeks to develop financial infrastructure to transform these assets into long-term portfolios that can facilitate the wider distribution of returns to capital, endow critical social programs, and catalyze inclusive economic development. Our aim is to aid the management of social wealth funds, drive the democratization of finance, and strengthen the solidarity economy.
Drawing on resources from across the public, private, and academic spheres, JFI builds tools, conducts basic and applied research, convenes scholars and practitioners, and develops partnerships to help transform public assets into long-term financial portfolios in service of the public interest.
PARTNER WITH US
We partner with social wealth fund managers, academics, policymakers, and government officials in the US and abroad. Examples of this work include a study of financing and infrastructural options to support cash transfers and economic development in Compton, California, as well as our ongoing collaboration with UFF and the Treasury of Niterói, Brazil to develop tools and resources for the newly created Fundo de Equalização da Receita (Budget Stabilization Fund), including stochastic modeling software for portfolio analysis and risk management.
PARTNERS
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Forum of Brazilian Sovereign Wealth Funds
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Fundo de Equalização da Receita, Niterói, Brazil
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Fundo Soberano do Estado do Espírito Santo, Brazil
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Fundo Soberano de Maricá, Brazil
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Fundo Soberano Municipal, Ilhabela, Brazil
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Universidade Federal Fluminense
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Fundação Euclides da Cunha, Niterói, Brazil
Featured Partners
Brazil's Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds
The Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds in Brazil builds innovative pathways for increasing the capacity of publicly-held assets to fund bold new social programs. Led by VP Paul Katz, JFI has worked with Brazilian partners to launch the forum, bringing together fund managers and political leaders into conversation with experts from academia and finance, and building the modeling capacity of the member funds.
Social Wealth Contributors
Adriel Araujo
Fellow
Andrea Gama
Affiliate Researcher
Francis Tseng
Lead Independent Researcher
Jason Windawi
Fellow
Jonathan Calenzani
Fellow
Paul Katz
VP and Lead Researcher
Sina Sinai
Research Associate
Thaís Donega
Fellow
Related Publication Series
Municipal Public Banking
Social Wealth Seminar
Recent Updates
JFI at Climate Week
JFI and our affiliate initiative, the Center for Active Stewardship, are hosting a series of events during NYC Climate Week.
Climate Week with JFI, CAS, and CPE: In-person panel
How will the green transition be financed in the US?
Press Release: Mexico’s Petroleum Hedging Program as Counter-Cyclical Insurance
The Jain Family Institute released a new report assessing the remarkable petroleum hedging strategy that has been deployed for nearly...
Mexico’s Petroleum Hedging Program as Counter-Cyclical Insurance
A new report and modeling exercise point to the possible relevance of this successful petroleum hedging strategy to other exporting...
Brazilian Subnational Social Wealth Funds in Bloomberg and Washington Post
"Brazil’s Oil-Rich Cities Are Revolutionizing Its Public Wealth Management."
JFI’s public bank work in the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles City Council has taken the next step towards a public bank.
Media coverage for JFI and the Berggruen Institute’s Municipal Public Banking research
NextCity covered the report's implications; the Los Angeles City Council has voted on next steps for implementation.
Event: We Take Mumbucas: Charting the Complementary Currency that’s Transforming a Brazilian City
A virtual event, Friday, June 30 from 1-2:30pm ET.
We Take Mumbucas: Charting the Complementary Currency That’s Transforming a Brazilian City
A new report by Andrea Gama and interactive visualization from Francis Tseng.
Part of the series Social Wealth Seminar
Press Release: Digital Complementary Currency Drives Revitalization of Brazilian City
Report and visualization offer first look at the impact of Maricá’s mumbuca, one of the most widely traded local...
JFI and Berggruen Institute Release Interactive Tool Exploring Impacts of a Public Bank
Digital web app allows anyone to build custom lending portfolios and see projected impacts on affordable housing, green energy, and...
Municipal Bank of LA: Interactive Balance Sheet Simulator
The simulator enables the public to allocate resources among the proposed public bank lending programs, testing cost and profit assumptions...
Part of the series Municipal Public Banking
Press release: People’s assemblies should govern public banks
A new report from JFI and the Berggruen Institute's Municipal Public Banking series
Municipal Bank of LA: Democratic Governance Frameworks
A briefing by Michael McCarthy of the Berggruen Institute on deliberative democracy for public finance and investment.
Part of the series Municipal Public Banking
JFI and Berggruen Institute Report: Public Bank Could Finance Over 17,000 Affordable Homes in Los Angeles
Press release: Latest in publication series on public banking shows how low-cost city programs can help protect and expand affordable...
Municipal Bank of LA: Housing Solutions and Portfolio Options
An analysis of how a public bank in Los Angeles could support the city’s broader infrastructure, housing, and sustainability...
Part of the series Municipal Public Banking
CBS covers JFI and Berggruen’s Public Banking report
On the first working paper in a series covering public banking in Los Angeles.
Press Release: JFI and Berggruen Institute Launch Series on Practical Pathways to Public Banking
Forthcoming publications lay out playbook for how a publicly-owned bank could unlock solutions to Los Angeles’ pressing challenges; new digital...
Launch of the Forum of Brazilian Sovereign Wealth Funds
The forum is a new association that invests in governance for a decarbonized future.
Press Release: The first technical seminar of the Forum of Brazilian Sovereign Wealth Funds
Researchers from the Jain Family Institute (JFI) and Brazil’s Federal Fluminense University (UFF) gathered with experts and government officials...
Social Wealth Seminar: Paul Williams and Zachary Marks
"Building a Future for Public Developers."
Part of the series Social Wealth Seminar
Presentation on A New Public Housing Model — Addis Ababa’s Urban Transformation
Join us on Friday, March 25 at 10am ET
A New Public Housing Model — Addis Ababa’s Urban Transformation
The first report from JFI's Social Wealth Portfolio
Social Wealth Fund work featured in Brazil’s O Globo
Coverage of the partnership between JFI, UFF, CEDE, and the government of the city of Niterói