The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has named a national leader in sustainable finance and environmental, social and governance investing to its board of directors to help guide its work in affordable housing, economic development, health, education, safety and jobs across the country.
Karen Fang, head of global sustainable finance at Bank of America, oversees the bank's business activities, including financing, advisory and distribution, in social and environmental progress globally. She joins a 27-member LISC board chaired by former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and includes leaders from the fields of finance, community development, academia, health and philanthropy.
"Karen has tremendous experience as an innovator. She has a fierce commitment to putting capital to work in ways that help build a more broadly shared prosperity throughout the country," said Maurice A. Jones, LISC president and CEO.
"Especially now, as COVID-19 continues to affect people's health and livelihoods, it is vital that we address the nation's racial gaps in wealth, health and opportunity; invest in small businesses; expand affordable housing; and improve access to healthy food and vital medical care," he added.
Fang serves on Bank of America's Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Committee, its Sustainable Markets Committee, and its Asian Leadership Council. Before leading the bank's sustainable finance work, she was head of its global fixed income, currencies & commodities (FICC) cross asset trading division as well as head of the Americas FICC sales & solutions division.
"LISC has a powerful model blending public, private and nonprofit capital to drive local strategies for inclusive, sustainable growth," noted Fang. "I'm honored to be named to this national board and also to support and contribute to LISC's work. It is critical that we continue to break down barriers and help catalyze opportunities for families and communities that lead to economic stability and empowerment."
Among her many accolades, Fang has been named one of Fortune's 40 under 40, a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum (WEF), one of Business Insider's 100 People Transforming Business, and one of Investment Dealer Digest's 40 under 40. In addition, she has served as a mentor for the Global Ambassadors program, a Bank of America partnership with Vital Voices; was honored by the Women's Venture Fund for her work with female entrepreneurs; and won the Women's Bond Club of New York's "Rising Star Award." Before joining Bank of America Fang was a managing director at Goldman Sachs. She also previously held senior positions at Merrill Lynch in Tokyo and Deutsche Bank in London.
For more on the LISC board of directors, visit https://www.lisc.org/about-us/board-of-directors/.
About LISC
With residents and partners, LISC forges resilient and inclusive communities of opportunity across America – great places to live, work, visit, do business and raise families. Since 1979, LISC has invested $22 billion to build or rehab more than 419,000 affordable homes and apartments and develop 70.3 million square feet of retail, community and educational space. For more, visit www.lisc.org.
