We have seen a clear rise in demand for sustainable investment solutions over the past few years, with the highest annual inflow of money into such funds to date over the last year. Investors are becoming increasingly aware of the possibility of investing in high quality ethical funds without having to compromise on return. We expect demand to keep rising driven by investors’ increasing expectation that their money is invested in a way that does no harm, even if they aren’t actively looking for ethical investments.More than half of the demand for sustainable investment comes from millennials. This generation is becoming increasingly concerned with ethical issues such as animal cruelty, climate change and labour rights.
Seabrook Clark has been offering an ethical portfolio as one of the seven investment models clients can choose from since it was set up in 2013. This year as a progressive firm, we are actively developing our investment proposition by remodelling our existing Ethical portfolio into an ESG portfolio.
When making our investment choices we aim to select funds which achieve a balance between consistently strong performance, screening out unethical and supporting sustainable businesses. Our portfolio has exposure to clean energy, waste, pollution and resource management, and avoids alcohol, armaments, gambling, pornography and tobacco amongst others.
Whereas Ethical was often seen as niche, ESG is now very much part of the main-stream. We believe sustainable investment will continue to move away from being defined by what it does not invest in and focus on investing in ‘positive impact’ businesses which help tackle issues such as climate change, air pollution and water scarcity.
If you would like to find out more about our Ethical or other portfolios, please do give us a call on 01392 875500 or email info@seabrookclark.co.uk.
Please note, this article is for information only and does not constitute investment or tax advice. Past performance is not necessarily an indication of future returns; the value of investments and any income from them is not guaranteed and can fall as well as rise; pension rules and tax legislation are subject to change. If you would like investment or pension advice on your individual circumstances, please do not hesitate to get in touch on 01392 875500 or info@seabrookclark.co.uk
By Veselina Petrova