5 reasons why you should invest ethically

Consumer demand for ethical investing is on the rise, now almost £13 billion of UK investors’ money now under the management of ethical funds (Investment Association). We’ve put together a few reasons which why this may be happening and why we think you may want to consider investing ethically.

1.       You can decide what your money is financing. If you currently invest in a pension or an ISA there is a very strong chance that your money could be financing, among other things, weapon production, animal exploitation or environmental damage. If the impact that your money may have on such issues matters to you then responsible investing is something you should consider.

2.       You can make a difference. Nowadays investors have a growing choice of funds and can personalize their portfolios to make a positive difference. Impact investing is investing made with the intention to generate positive, measurable and environmental impact alongside a financial return. Here is an example below (ImpactBase)

A European private equity fund invests between several million in companies that provide clean electricity to rural communities in developing countries with limited access to energy. The fund made an investment in a company that provides solar energy for lighting and refrigeration in rural Indian households, schools, and hospitals that have limited access to the main electricity grid. Enabled by this investment, the company has installed more than 40,000 systems and currently offsets 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

Some positive criteria which a fund may choose to invest in are: minimising animal testing, environmental management and human rights support.

3.       You don’t have to sacrifice financial returns. For a long time, ethical investing had negative connotations attached to it; more volatility, lower returns, higher costs. Fortunately, a remarkable transformation has taken place as many ethical funds currently on the market consistently outperform their more conventional and established their peers.

In a journal by Friede (Deutsche Asset &Wealth Management) and Busch (University of Hamburg), over 2000 empirical studies on the relationship between ESG factors and corporate financial performance from the past 40 years were aggregate. The journal concluded that 90% of them have found that ESG factors have a positive or neutral impact on financial returns.

4.       It makes sense. Investing ethically provides solutions for environmental concerns in the long term such as global warming and pollution, and investments supporting these tend to hold firm in times of volatility.

5.       Psychic returns (non-wealth motivations). Making a positive difference to the world we live in through your investment decisions can give a feel good factor, just like when you would donate to charity or volunteer. All whilst insuring a hopefully brighter future for now and the generations to come.

Our Chartered status

Purposeful.Money have previously achieved Chartered Status and we now feel it is important to explain what this actually means, as it is an important award with significant recognition. 

The status was awarded to Purposeful.Money by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) and acts as a kitemark for quality in the eyes of the public being widely recognised as a symbol of trust. 

This recognition is more important nowadays as quite rightly consumers are more demanding than ever before. Understandably they expect to deal with Financial Advisers who can provide first class service, advice and support. Independent research has shown that consumers recognise the Chartered status as a symbol of professionalism and excellence.

What does the charter mean though and why is it such a symbol of excellence?

Essentially, Chartered Status enables us to be able to demonstrate our professional commitment to raising standards of knowledge, capability and ethical practice.  It lets our clients know that they will receive the highest levels of service from us.

Any client who engages the services of a Chartered Financial Adviser can expect the highest level of qualifications to have been achieved along with the highest standards of professionalism.

Royal Charters date back as far as the 11th century and can cover bodies such as Universities, Charities and professional Institutions.  On the advice of the Privy Council a Charter is awarded by the Monarch of the time.  These are granted in rare circumstances and in general terms is only done so where there is a convincing case that it is in the public Interest to provide Government oversight of the body and where a profession is able to demonstrate a track record of achievement over a number of years.

Once a professional body is granted this Charter they are then able to grant ‘Chartered Titles’ to individuals and firms which meet strict qualifying criteria.  In our circumstances the CII, who were granted its Royal Charter in 1912, must uphold the rules of its Charter and in turn the holders of the Chartered titles such as Purposeful.Money must comply with their Code of Ethics

Chartered Status brings with it some serious obligations on the part of the adviser.  We are required to ensure that our advice and ongoing support is:

• Of the highest quality

• Based on the client’s researched needs

• Provided by someone operating within their level of competency

Advisers must meet these requirements in a number of ways:

• A commitment to professional development, including attaining the highest qualifications

• An adherence to continual professional development that is evidenced to the CII.

Even though the Royal Charters are a British Institution it is widely recognised outside of the UK as well.  Being able to demonstrate an ongoing commitment to professional development is a set of values that is recognised the world over.

At Purposeful.Money we are proud to have achieved the status of Chartered Financial Advisers and continually strive to meet the code of ethics and standards of professional qualifications set by the CII.  Our core objective is to offer clients an opportunity to invest their money in a more socially responsible manner in order to help achieve positive benefits in the world.  We believe that the ethics and values required to maintain the Chartered Status are in perfect accord with our own principles of integrity and trust.