All about sustainable investing

Learn what you need to know to make a difference

Only 39% of investors invest sustainably1—largely because they just aren’t clear about what it is, and how it can make a difference. Here, we break it down for you with what you need to know about sustainable investing to get started and make a difference.

What is sustainable investing?

It’s a way to invest for the returns you expect while staying true to your values. That’s whether you care about a cause, driving social change, or how a company or country conducts itself.

Three main ways to invest sustainably:

Exclusion

Exclude companies and industries that don’t reflect your values from your portfolio.

Integration

Integrate environmental, social and corporate governance factors into your portfolio to improve your returns and reduce your risk.

Impact

Invest with the intention to generate measurable environmental and social impact, alongside a financial return.

Myth vs. reality

Icon myth 1

Myth

You sacrifice performance
 

Sustainable investment returns are comparable to what you can expect from conventional ones.2, 3 According to research, investing sustainably improves returns or doesn't harm them.2 So it's little surprise the global sustainable investment market is growing.

Icon myth 2

Myth

You can’t measure the impact

With impact investing, you can already see the difference you’re making, since that’s a criteria. Even more promising, companies and funds are reporting their social and environmental impact.

Icon myth 3

Myth

You need to be an expert
 

A simple way to reflect your values is to choose sustainable investment mutual funds, SMAs or ETFs. By 2023, investors expect sustainable investing to be mainstream, so join the movement.

Who’s investing sustainably?

The young and the wealthy lead the way1

Globally

39% of investors globally

Ages

56%
Ages 18-34

Assets

54%
$50m+ in assets

Fresh perspectives

Why UBS?

We want to shape the future of sustainable investing. Why? Because we believe these investments can deliver returns with less risk to your money. We are also confident that sustainable investing will soon become the world's most widely accepted way of investing.2, 3

Furthermore, as the world's leading wealth manager,4 we feel responsible for helping change things for the better. We have the capital, solutions and expertise to make a big difference globally.

These aren’t just words. We walk the talk. In 2017, we pledge to support our clients in investing USD 5 billion into impact investments over the next five years to help plug funding gaps needed to reach the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). And you’ll always have a team of sustainable investing experts helping you do more for your finances and the world.

We drive change

We drive change

How UBS is making a difference in the world

Read more
We support global visionaries

We support global visionaries

Insights from thought leaders whose work is shaping our future.

Read more
We bring people together

We bring people together

Insights from UBS Investment Summit Davos 2018

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Is your portfolio having the impact you want?

Discover how we can help you

1 'Based on UBS Investor Watch results 2018. for further information visit our website.
2 'ESG and financial performance: aggregated evidence from more than 2000 empirical studies', Journal of Sustainable Finance and Investment, Gunnar Friede, Timo Busch, Alexander Bassen, 2015
3 'Introducing the Impact Investing Benchmark', Global Impact Investing Network and Cambridge Associates, 2015
4 'Source: World’s best bank for Wealth Management 2018, Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2018