Murray McEwan MA CFP, Flowers McEwan
“Nothing else matches the level of analysis and reporting of Worthstone’s Impact Portal. We’re able to demonstrate clearly to clients the positive impact their money makes.”
Murray McEwan MA CFP, Director, Flowers McEwan
Independent financial planners Flowers McEwan have been subscribing to Worthstone since 2014. Joint Owner Murray McEwan describes the integral role Worthstone’s Impact Portal tool plays in helping the Leeds-based firm select funds that truly align with their clients’ ethics.
Worthstone’s Impact Portal is unique. As far as I’m aware, nothing else matches the level of analysis and reporting it provides. Alternative tools are quite crude and doing it yourself as an individual firm is really difficult and incredibly time consuming.
Using the database, we’re able to filter our portfolios from an impact perspective, such as their contribution to positive environmental outcomes or exposure to potentially harmful activities. We can dissect the portfolios fund by fund and really see what’s beneath the label.
The integrity of Worthstone underpins everything. Fund managers can’t pay to appear on the database, levelling the playing field. It’s easy to cut through greenwashing and green marketing, so we can select funds that truly align with our clients’ wishes.
The tool is brilliantly laid out and very intuitive to use, with an objective impact rating given to each individual fund. Our clients find it really easy to understand too. It’s very satisfying being able to show them in such a clear way the positive impact their money is making in the world.
When you explore ethics and values with clients, the vast majority want to build this into their investment approach. As advisers, we’ve got a regulatory responsibility to help our clients navigate sustainable investing in a meaningful way. Advisers are increasingly waking up to this – it’s not ok to simply ignore the question in fact finds with clients anymore.