Responsible investing without the labels

Behind every investment there is a particular company and a particular way of doing business. If it matters to you what your money goes into, we can take that into account when the portfolio is built. We will explain the options, their limits and what each choice means for your portfolio.

I want to invest responsibly How we work

Your priorities

What you can take into account in a portfolio

You can limit companies with a high carbon intensity, or give more room to those actively reducing their impact.

The selection can take in how companies treat their employees and how they approach human rights in their supply chains.

It can also reflect the transparency of a company board, the way decisions are made or the rules for executive pay.

With every investment in the portfolio it should be clear why it is there. That holds whichever approach to responsible investing you choose.

What it means for the portfolio

What a responsible selection changes, and what it does not

Responsible selection is one more criterion in a portfolio, not a different way of investing. It affects which companies or sectors are represented and which we limit or leave out. That can also change how the portfolio behaves in different situations.

The basic principles stay the same. We still watch the spread of risk, the investment horizon, the costs and the role each investment plays in the portfolio as a whole. A more responsible selection does not in itself mean a higher return or lower risk.

Diversification still matters Even when some companies or sectors are limited, we make sure the portfolio does not end up unnecessarily dependent on one market, one sector or one type of investment.
The content decides, not the label An ESG or sustainable label is not enough on its own. We look at what an investment actually holds and the rules it is built on.

Past performance does not guarantee future results. Actual returns depend on market conditions and are not guaranteed.

Three different approaches

ESG, SRI and impact are not the same thing

The terms used around responsible investing often appear side by side, but they do not mean the same thing. They differ in what they look at when selecting investments and how strict the criteria are.

ESG: what we look at in a company

ESG takes environmental, social and governance factors into account when a company is assessed. It helps to judge how the company operates, what risks it carries and how it is run. On its own, though, it does not say that a company is green or socially beneficial.

E for environmental. The impact on the environment, for example emissions, energy and resource use or waste management.
S for social. The relationship to people: employees, customers, suppliers and the communities where the company operates.
G for governance. The way the company is run, for example transparency, accountability of the board, control mechanisms or executive pay.

SRI: what you want to own

SRI, or socially responsible investing, also brings the values and preferences of the investor into the selection. Certain companies or sectors can be deliberately left out of the portfolio and others given preference. This approach traditionally works mainly with value-based criteria and screening of investments.

You can exclude sectors that conflict with your values.
You can give preference to companies that meet the criteria you choose.
The selection is always judged in the context of the whole portfolio, its risk and your long-term goals.

Impact: what change you want to support

Impact investing goes a step further. Alongside a financial return, the aim is deliberately to contribute to a specific and measurable positive effect on society or the environment.

This can mean investments focused on affordable housing, clean energy, healthcare or other specific social and environmental goals. What matters is not only what the company does. In genuine impact investing, the intended and measurable effect of the investment is tracked as well.

Greenwashing

A fund name is not enough

A label such as sustainable, ESG or responsible says nothing in itself about what a fund actually holds or the rules by which it picks investments.

So we look beneath the surface. We check what the fund holds, the rules it invests by and how well those match what you expect from responsible investing. For the investments we recommend, we explain why we chose them and what role they play in your portfolio.

Interested in socially responsible investments?We will go through what it changes in the portfolio

We will discuss what matters to you and how it can be reflected in the portfolio.

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