We believe responsible investment leads to better financial returns and more sustainable business practices. For us, being responsible investors means incorporating environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in our investment decisions and actively engaging with companies on key issues.
Responsible investing is important at all stages of the investment process, from our research analysts recommending stocks, to our clients telling us what they want their portfolios to achieve.
We are seeing increasing demand for all aspects of responsible investing. This is an exciting opportunity for us to serve our clients in innovative ways and influence society around us. Whatever your views on responsible investing, we have solutions for all including impact and positive investing and negative screening. This is part of our bespoke client offering.
What Is a Socially Responsible Investment?
An investment is considered socially responsible based on the nature of the business the company conducts. Common themes for socially responsible investments include avoiding investment in companies that produce or sell addictive substances (like alcohol, gambling, and tobacco) and seeking out companies engaged in social justice, environmental sustainability and alternative energy/clean technology efforts. Socially responsible investments can be made in individual companies or funds which have an SRI policy.
Having a SRI screening policy should not necessarily impact on performance and we consider it best practice to follow such an approach.
We subscribe to Ethicalscreening.com
This helps us to:
- Find companies with practices and products that align with your personal values
- Identify businesses that are proactively creating positive social or environmental change
- Determine which companies are managing environmental and social risk through future-focused business practices
- Avoid investing in firms with views or products at odds with your principles
Reuters ESG screening
Our Reuters ESG screening tools allow us to generate company reports on their ESG policies and provide scores.