Sustainable investments 2024 - webinar and report

Boring Money is hosting its next online insight session.

Join us Wednesday May 15 at 9am for a dedicated webinar on the findings from our upcoming Sustainable Investing Report.

The Sustainable Investing Report 2024 has been written to outline consumer awareness and interest in sustainable investments funds over the past year. It has been pulled together with valuable insights on consumer comprehension of sustainable investment concepts and labelling, and recommendations for providers in response to the FCA’s Sustainability Disclosure Requirements.

What to expect in 2024's Sustainability Report?

Appetite and consumer demand for sustainable funds has not returned to its lockdown peak. Right now, the clear priority is that people want their investments to make as much as possible. Anything else plays second fiddle.

Boring Money has been tracking and segmenting consumer appetite and understanding in this space since our first report on Ethical Investing in 2018. For 2024’s report, we have tracked consumer understanding and appetite with the upcoming sustainable disclosure regime in mind.

This year, we note more people cite financial returns as a greater priority over sustainable outcomes. We also see continued concern about greenwashing (much more than we did a few years back).

Ethical funds are creating a few headaches, as they are square pegs in a world of round labels. The FCA has made it clear that ethical sits outside of sustainability considerations, so they do not have a label of their own. Of course, ethical funds might also have a sustainability objective and could therefore be in scope for a label – or they might not.

Appetite for sustainable and impact investment products is flat or lower. We might surmise that this goes hand-in-hand with concerns over greenwashing. It could also be a result of limited understanding about what is meant by these descriptors. We would infer growing frustration with trying to work out what asset managers actually mean by this term.

As for individual brand preference, investors do not have any clear standout ‘go to’ brands. Usually, they mention well-known or popular brands, but some smaller brands are also gaining attention and being considered. The opportunity to ‘own’ this space in the consumer mind remains clear.

Awareness and confidence about navigating industry terminology remains low. We also test the new proposed labels with consumers to map and identify future appetite and consideration.

Suspicion remains high in this sector. Perhaps unsurprisingly, consumer appetite for the expressed outcomes and nature of funds described by the ‘Improver’ label is weak. Although, many in the industry may feel this is the most honest description. This will create a fresh tension inside many businesses with fund managers competing between commercial targets and compliance requirements.

Please join us at our launch webinar on Wed 15 May to hear details from our findings from the Sustainable Investing Report 2024.

The full report will include consumer data and insights on ownership, brand, future consideration, priorities, trends, barriers, understanding of terms and labels, and also practical tips to support better disclosure and communication. Please reach out or read more about the webinar and the Sustainability Report.