Corporate ethics focus provides new opportunity for social investing, says Ethical Funds exec

Related News Stories Ethical Funds reaches out to advisor channel Values added: An advisor’s guide to socially responsible investing Ethical wealth: Clients who wish to incorporate their values into their investment plan may be looking for SRI Fresh air: Why you should determine if your clients are interested in SRI Traditionally, advisors have been reluctant […]

By Doug Watt | October 7, 2002 | Last updated on October 7, 2002
3 min read
  • Ethical Funds reaches out to advisor channel
  • Values added: An advisor’s guide to socially responsible investing
  • Ethical wealth: Clients who wish to incorporate their values into their investment plan may be looking for SRI
  • Fresh air: Why you should determine if your clients are interested in SRI

    Traditionally, advisors have been reluctant to add SRI funds to their product lineup. Yee believes that’s because there’s a lot of confusion about what SRI means and advisors don’t want to be embarrassed in front of clients.

    “The information wasn’t easily accessible before.” Yee said. “Our objective is to change that, to work with advisors and educate them. If we can help them grow their business, hopefully a percentage will come to us as well.”

    Jonathan Allen of Clay Finlay, who manages Ethical’s new European Equity Fund, conceded he was skeptical about SRI, particularly from a performance point of view. “We were reluctant to put our record at risk,” Allen said at yesterday’s presentation.

    But after going back 10 years and applying Ethical’s screening process, Allen discovered Clay Finlay’s funds would actually have performed better. “Having an ethical bias should not affect performance,” he said.

    As a growth-oriented outfit, Ethical has had a rough couple of years, Yee admitted. “But the bear market doesn’t last forever, it just feels like it,” she said. “If we’re not at the bottom we’ve got to be very near the bottom. And launching now we don’t have that history, we’re starting with a clean slate.”

    The Ethical Canadian Dividend Fund, U.S. Special Equity Fund, Global Growth Fund, International Equity Fund, European Equity Fund, plus two RSP-eligible clones, went on the market October 1. Ethical’s SRI fund family of 19 is the largest in Canada. Ethical Funds has $1.9 billion in assets under management and 180,000 investors. The road shows continue next week in Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Vancouver. Click here for more information about or to register for one of Ethical Funds’ future road shows.

    Filed by Doug Watt, Advisor.ca, dwatt@advisor.ca.

    (10/04/02)

    Doug Watt

    • Related News Stories
  • Ethical Funds reaches out to advisor channel
  • Values added: An advisor’s guide to socially responsible investing
  • Ethical wealth: Clients who wish to incorporate their values into their investment plan may be looking for SRI
  • Fresh air: Why you should determine if your clients are interested in SRI

    • Traditionally, advisors have been reluctant to add SRI funds to their product lineup. Yee believes that’s because there’s a lot of confusion about what SRI means and advisors don’t want to be embarrassed in front of clients.

    “The information wasn’t easily accessible before.” Yee said. “Our objective is to change that, to work with advisors and educate them. If we can help them grow their business, hopefully a percentage will come to us as well.”

    Jonathan Allen of Clay Finlay, who manages Ethical’s new European Equity Fund, conceded he was skeptical about SRI, particularly from a performance point of view. “We were reluctant to put our record at risk,” Allen said at yesterday’s presentation.

    But after going back 10 years and applying Ethical’s screening process, Allen discovered Clay Finlay’s funds would actually have performed better. “Having an ethical bias should not affect performance,” he said.

    As a growth-oriented outfit, Ethical has had a rough couple of years, Yee admitted. “But the bear market doesn’t last forever, it just feels like it,” she said. “If we’re not at the bottom we’ve got to be very near the bottom. And launching now we don’t have that history, we’re starting with a clean slate.”

    The Ethical Canadian Dividend Fund, U.S. Special Equity Fund, Global Growth Fund, International Equity Fund, European Equity Fund, plus two RSP-eligible clones, went on the market October 1. Ethical’s SRI fund family of 19 is the largest in Canada. Ethical Funds has $1.9 billion in assets under management and 180,000 investors. The road shows continue next week in Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Vancouver. Click here for more information about or to register for one of Ethical Funds’ future road shows.

    Filed by Doug Watt, Advisor.ca, dwatt@advisor.ca.

    (10/04/02)