Institutional ESG Integration Demand Surges - Morgan Stanley
(United Kingdom - 21 June 2019) Eight out of ten institutions are considering integrating ESG into their investment process, figures from Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) reveal.
The survey conducted by the investment bank showed that almost half (49 percent) of the 118 participating organisations said they were looking to integrate sustainable investing across the board. Only a small minority (14 percent) admitted they had not considered it or that after consideration decided sustainable investment was not for them.
Assets invested in line with ESG-related strategies reached US$30 trillion in 2018 according to estimates by the Global Sustainable Investment Alliance, building on a 25 percent increase over the two year period from 2014 to 2016. Despite the trend toward sustainable investment increasing over the last decade, ESG integration varies across global markets. The US currently sits at 35 percent as opposed to Nordic markets where ESG is paramount. Netherlands has also shown an increase in interest with Japan being the only country in Asia where sustainable investing is picking up.
Clients are increasingly looking for ESG funds to meet their investment requirements without any compromise to returns. "There is no real cost to being ESG conscious in your portfolio and in your investment decision making process," stated Jim Caron, New York-based head of Global Macro Strategies at a forum in London, admitting that is one of the first questions investors ask.
"Morgan Stanley is in a unique position to harness the capital markets to help address the most pressing challenges facing society today, connecting governments, investors and businesses with the capital to execute at scale" said CEO and chairman of Morgan Stanley James Gorman.
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