Mr Patel said: “I’d like the area to be more clearly defined because it is one of the things that goes through my mind every time I am selecting funds. ‘How does this fund score on sustainability? How does this score on ESG?’ I find it a very difficult area to navigate.
“I did read that one specialist adviser in sustainable investing said he looks underneath the bonnet of each company and does detailed searches on each company the fund invests in. I must confess that I don’t go that far, but I would like more assistance in categorising the different definitions of ESG, sustainable, and ethical [funds]. It is an area that is not so easy to navigate and I have to spend some time on it.”
He added: “One of the criteria I do use is how long the manager has been doing it. I also read more widely on their shareholder activism. So, I am looking beyond the definition to see what more the fund managers have done for the promotion of sustainability and the achievement of equality.
“But I would like more assistance. It would be nice to have a sustainability fund sector and an ESG sector, or an ethical sector – just something that is more clearly defined by the regulator. It needs to come because it produces confusion and confusion then produces lower take up.”
The webinar will remain available online for a month. Visit: https://tinyurl.com/y4yf8cmq
Aamina Zafar is a freelance journalist
