NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, August 9, 2013

Impact investing seems to be edging out traditional “socially responsible investing” in attracting the investment dollars of ultra-high-net-worth investors, according to new research and industry observers.

In a recent Spectrem Group survey, investors with between $5 million and $25 million in liquid net worth expressed less interest in socially responsible investing than they did five years earlier.

The survey results did not come as a surprise to officials at a leading SRI investment firm Calvert Investments, who said wealthy families and foundations are moving away from legacy SRI vehicles.

“We’re seeing more money in today’s environment flowing to impact investing,” said Lynne Forde, Calvert’s executive vice president for distribution. “They’re much more interested in impact investing, where they can put larger sums of money to work for both financial return and social impact.”