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By James Langton |May 28, 2024
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(June 3, 2003) There’s been little growth in the number of financial advisors working in the socially responsible investment (SRI) field in Canada. Lack of product may be a contributing factor, according to SRI advisors speaking at the Social Investment Organization’s Vancouver conference.
There’s limited product in the mutual fund field and there is also overlap between some of those funds, said Montreal advisor Ken Thorpe of Tandem Financial Services during a session on marketing SRI yesterday.
Vancouver advisor Fran Goldberg, an advisor with Sage Financial Planning, pointed to a lack of desire by fund manufacturers to spend time building a new product. “For example, I have clients that no longer want to be in global markets and I have no place to move them that is socially responsible within Mackenzie,” she told Advisor.ca after the session. “This is a big problem.”
Thorpe called on advisors interested in SRI to create demand at the fund distribution and manufacturing level by being vocal.
There’s also a demand for community investment and venture capital projects related to SRI that is not being met, conference delegates heard during a question-and-answer period.
The dearth of competition in the SRI advisor arena does have its advantages. For advisors who do offer SRI alternatives, there’s a “build it and they will come” mentality.
Both Goldberg and Thorpe say they do little marketing, because clients tend to seek them out. Thorpe is heavily involved in his community, sitting on boards of non-governmental organizations and working with an ethical investment club. “I believe in social justice and environmental causes but I don’t use it as a marketing tool,” he said. “People come to me because there’s momentum.”
Goldberg says she uses lengthy KYC interviews to identify potential SRI investors. “The trick is to do your homework and find out what clients might be receptive.”
Although some in the SRI field believe ethical investors tend to be more loyal, or “picky and sticky,” according to Nick Robins of Henderson Global Investors, Goldberg says that’s not necessarily true, particularly in a bear market. “There’s a certain percentage of people who will stick like glue, but the period of negative returns has been just too long,” she said.
At the same time, clients who really believe in SRI will likely be loyal, Goldberg added, for reasons of necessity. “They know I’m probably it, I’m one of maybe two planners in the city that can connect them to the right place.”
• • •
Filed by Doug Watt, Advisor.ca, dwatt@advisor.ca
(06/03/03)
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(June 3, 2003) There’s been little growth in the number of financial advisors working in the socially responsible investment (SRI) field in Canada. Lack of product may be a contributing factor, according to SRI advisors speaking at the Social Investment Organization’s Vancouver conference.
There’s limited product in the mutual fund field and there is also overlap between some of those funds, said Montreal advisor Ken Thorpe of Tandem Financial Services during a session on marketing SRI yesterday.
Vancouver advisor Fran Goldberg, an advisor with Sage Financial Planning, pointed to a lack of desire by fund manufacturers to spend time building a new product. “For example, I have clients that no longer want to be in global markets and I have no place to move them that is socially responsible within Mackenzie,” she told Advisor.ca after the session. “This is a big problem.”
Thorpe called on advisors interested in SRI to create demand at the fund distribution and manufacturing level by being vocal.
There’s also a demand for community investment and venture capital projects related to SRI that is not being met, conference delegates heard during a question-and-answer period.
The dearth of competition in the SRI advisor arena does have its advantages. For advisors who do offer SRI alternatives, there’s a “build it and they will come” mentality.
Both Goldberg and Thorpe say they do little marketing, because clients tend to seek them out. Thorpe is heavily involved in his community, sitting on boards of non-governmental organizations and working with an ethical investment club. “I believe in social justice and environmental causes but I don’t use it as a marketing tool,” he said. “People come to me because there’s momentum.”
Goldberg says she uses lengthy KYC interviews to identify potential SRI investors. “The trick is to do your homework and find out what clients might be receptive.”
Although some in the SRI field believe ethical investors tend to be more loyal, or “picky and sticky,” according to Nick Robins of Henderson Global Investors, Goldberg says that’s not necessarily true, particularly in a bear market. “There’s a certain percentage of people who will stick like glue, but the period of negative returns has been just too long,” she said.
At the same time, clients who really believe in SRI will likely be loyal, Goldberg added, for reasons of necessity. “They know I’m probably it, I’m one of maybe two planners in the city that can connect them to the right place.”
• • •
Filed by Doug Watt, Advisor.ca, dwatt@advisor.ca
(06/03/03)
