Australian Ethical has revealed that adviser-related flows have increased 135 per cent from $61 million in 1H21 to $145 million in IH22.
The fund manager said the jump reflects an ongoing investment in its adviser channel, including the launch of an adviser resource hub and a new online resource to assist advisers talk about climate with their clients.
The news comes after a study conducted by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA) in March revealed that knowing about responsible investment is now the top expectation of financial advisers.
Over 1,000 Australians surveyed this year expect their advisers to be knowledgeable about responsible investment, which increased from 54 per cent in 2020 to 64 per cent in 2022.
74 per cent of Australians are considering moving to another provider if they found out their current fund was investing in companies inconsistent with their values.
“Australians are increasingly demanding ethical investment options from their advisers, fund managers, super fund providers, and other investment professionals,” John McMurdo, CEO and managing director of Australian Ethical said this week.
“It is no longer acceptable for money managers to solely chase solid returns. We must also achieve solid returns through ethical means on top of delivering financial outcomes.
“For this reason we have built on our 35 years’ experience as Australia’s pioneering ethical investor, by further shoring up the ethical pedigree of our Investment Committee and adviser offering.
“We hope to help more advisers take full advantage of the surge of interest in responsible and ethical investing that is accelerating flows of our funds.”
Just a few weeks prior to the RIAA study, research released by behavioural finance experts Oxford Risk suggested advisers face losing clients over a perceived lack of focus and commitment to ESG investing.
According to Oxford Risk, two out of three retail investors are considering transferring their investments to a new adviser purely based on their current adviser’s engagement with ESG.
In fact, one in five said they have already done so or intend to do so.
