FT Adviser (12/06/2019) – The financial advice industry is greatly divided in its approach about whether to consider ethical, sustainable and governance (ESG) funds for its clients, according to the latest FTAdviser Talking Point poll.
The poll asked advisers the following question: “How likely are you to consider ESG funds for your clients?”
The results were mixed as 22 per cent of respondents said they are likely to recommend them and 44 per cent said it depends on the type of client they are dealing with.
But more than one third (34 per cent) of advisers said they are likely to never consider ESG funds for their clients.
Ricky Chan, chartered financial planner and director at IFS Wealth and Pensions was surprised that 34 per cent of respondents said they would never consider them.
He said: “In my humble experience, if you educate clients and have a genuine discussion about what ESG funds can do, then you often find that clients hadn’t realised that this was an investment option and so they become quite open to the idea.”
Mr Chan said there should be a universally accepted minimum standard that applies to ESG funds as the criteria and investment processes vary widely.
He added: “By doing this, we can have more confidence that they are all genuinely trying to make a positive contribution to society, rather than some simply paying lip service.”
Full article link: https://www.ftadviser.com/investments/2019/06/12/one-third-advisers-would-never-consider-esg-funds/
