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Article (Scientific journals)

Are impact crypto assets a new emerging asset class for sustainable and impact investors?

VINOGRADOVA, Veronika; Gubareva, Mariya

2026 • In Finance Research Letters, 88, p. 109114

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

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https://hdl.handle.net/10993/66820

DOI
10.1016/j.frl.2025.109114

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Keywords :

impact investing; SDGs; tokenization; crypto assets; diversification opportunities; wavelet analysis

Abstract :

[en] Tokenization and distributed ledger technologies are unlocking new opportunities for sustainable investors willing not only earn financial returns but also contribute towards long-term societal and environmental goals. We build the Impact Crypto Index composed of crypto assets with strong focus on impact investing and sustainability and analyze its diversification and hedging properties in combination with major cryptocurrencies and traditional market indices. Our results indicate that the Impact Crypto Index exhibits lower volatility exposure than Bitcoin and Ethereum. Moreover, it offers strong diversification potential in combination with the S&P Clean Energy Index across various investment horizons, extending the portfolio opportunities for investors seeking investments with purpose.

Research center :

NCER-FT - FinTech National Centre of Excellence in Research

Disciplines :

Finance

Author, co-author :

VINOGRADOVA, Veronika ; University of Luxembourg > Faculty of Law, Economics and Finance (FDEF) > Department of Finance (DF)

Gubareva, Mariya

External co-authors :

yes

Language :

English

Title :

Are impact crypto assets a new emerging asset class for sustainable and impact investors?

Publication date :

January 2026

Journal title :

Finance Research Letters

ISSN :

1544-6123

eISSN :

1544-6131

Publisher :

Elsevier BV

Volume :

88

Pages :

109114

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Additional URL :

https://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S1544612325023633?httpAccept=text/xml

FnR Project :

FNR16570468 - NCER-FT - 2021 (01/03/2023-28/02/2025) - Gilbert Fridgen

Name of the research project :

NCER-FT - FinTech National Centre of Excellence in Research

Funders :

FNR - Luxembourg National Research Fund

Funding number :

NCER22/IS/16570468/NCER-FT

Funding text :

Veronika Vinogradova gratefully acknowledges that this research is a part of a running project at the University of Luxembourg, NCER-FT - FinTech National Centre of Excellence in Research and is funded in full by the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR), grant reference NCER22/IS/16570468/NCER-FT. Mariya Gubareva thankfully acknowledges that her work was partially supported by FCT, I.P., the Portuguese national funding agency for science, research and technology, under the project UID/06522/2025.

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