Money and morals

The London Stock Exchange reports that the number of exchange-traded funds focusing on green or socially responsible investments hit a record high last month, said The Times. There are now 31 such index-trackers, with £4bn of assets under management – and they’re packing a punch. Until fairly recently, punters “hoping to combine profits with their principles” risked disappointment. But as Ben Faulkner of EQ Investors notes: “over the past three years, the average ethical fund has outperformed its non-ethical rivals”, returning 36% compared with 31%. The appetite for these investments comes partly from private investors, especially millennials, but also from pension funds “under pressure from members to adopt an ethical approach”.

If you’re keen to follow suit, you could also support a more “eclectic mix of things that aim to make society better”. One is the Wellcome Trust’s huge health-focused endowment fund, which supports scientists across many fields. Another is Bazalgette Finance, a bond that raises money for the Thames Tideway Tunnel – a “super-sewer” that will stop overflow pollution. Environmentalists may also back the holiday network Center Parcs, which “works hard to reduce the environmental impact of its sites”, or Paprec, a fastgrowing recycling specialist currently shaking things up in France, where the percentage of waste recycled is far lower than elsewhere in Europe.