Fast Facts

These "fast facts" aim to provide a quick overview of sustainable investment and finance in the UK.

The European SRI Study 2008, for which UKSIF collected the UK data, estimates SRI AuM in the UK as £764 billion (as of 31 December 2007).**

The UK has become a world centre for sustainable and responsible finance with expertise in the field spread across a wide range of institutions and initiatives, such as:

 
Main fund manager approaches: 

  •      Integration
  •      Engagement
  •      Positive or negative screening
  •      Thematic investment propositions

 Key trends in sustainable investment and finance: 

  •      deepening of ESG integration across asset classes
  •      wider range of HNWI and retail investors gaining exposure to sustainable investing 
  •      greater interaction with policy makers 

 

**For our analysis of SRI in the UK download the UK section of the report (PDF, 145KB). For a full analysis of SRI in Europe, related definitions and study parameters download the complete European SRI Study 2008 (PDF, 1.7MB).

Thompson Reuters' report, 'Responsible Investment: Profiting from Sustainable Strategies' says "Today, (responsible investment) has become a huge force in global capital markets. And despite – or more likely because of – the unfolding economic crisis, many signs point to an even bigger influence in the future”.

SRI investors in the UK have evolved as church and charity investors have been joined by High Net Worth Individual (HNWI) investors and mass market individual investors. Eurosif's study on HNWIs estimates that sustainable investments represent 8% of European HNWIs' portfolios as of December 31 2007 and predicts that by 2012 the share will have increased to 12%, surpassing the €41 trillion mark. 

According to EIRIS, as at 31 Dec 2008 there was approximately £6.8 billion invested in the UK's green and ethical retail funds - up from £2.2 billion ten years ago. A report by Robeco and consulting firm Booz & Company, 'Responsible Investing: A Paradigm Shift' suggests that by 2015 RI will reach 15-20% of global AuM.  

Quarterly Investment Fund Statistics by the IMA show that net sales of ethical funds for Q4 2009 were £62.6 million, the highest since Quarter 4 2007. 

UKSIF has commented that the statistics highlight a growing trend of investors wanting to make money and make a positive difference to the world they live in.

 

For our latest press releases, visit our Media Centre. For more information about UKSIF, see our Mission, Values and Operating Principals, or read our Recent Publications.