London Programme
Conference Chair: Hope William-Smith, Incoming Editor, Professional Adviser
Does it pay to be responsible?
The move to ESG, or Responsible Investing over the last 3 years has been one of the fastest changes in Fund Management, leaving investors and their advisors grappling with a host of new taxonomy and a whole new layer of due diligence that needs to be applied when identifying suitable investments. This session will look at what the regulations are trying to achieve, how ESG/Responsible Investing is evolving and its importance to investors and what to look for when identifying suitable investments. With new regulations in the shape of SDR and fund labelling for ESG & responsible investing, advisors may feel overwhelmed. This presentation will look at some of challenges of researching a fund from an ESG perspective, and what the Square Mile team focus on when analysing funds.
By the end of this session, delegates will be able to:
- Explain what new regulations will mean for advisers and their clients
- Describe how ESG/Responsible Investing is evolving and its importance to investors
- Identify what factors are important to consider when researching Responsible funds
ESG investors should demand long term risk and return outcomes in-line with traditional portfolios.
ESG portfolios have endured a period of underperformance as rising inflation has ravaged the more highly valued investments within them. We will explore how to move beyond the ESG-spin and focus on the hard rules of evidence-based investing to assemble portfolios that can compete with their unconstrained peers over the economic cycle.
By the end of this session, delegates will be able to:
- Explain the importance of inflation and yields to portfolio outcomes
- Outline how to improve client outcomes through enhanced diversification
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Explain how to navigate greenwashing and style biases when selecting funds
Pictet-Positive Change, an equity strategy with a difference
Pictet-Positive Change is an equity fund for investors seeking to benefit from companies transitioning to the sustainable future economy. The fund aims to identify companies with strong alignment of their products & services with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), those improving their alignment, and those with the potential to improve their SDG-alignment encouraged by targeted engagement by the investment team. The aim is to create a concentrated portfolio of financially robust companies that are aligning with global efforts to achieve sustainability goals and that will outperform the broader market.
By the end of this session, delegates will be able to:
- Explain how we need to continue to invest in old economy sectors, but responsibly. They are a vital part of the global economy and often the place where we most need to see change
- Explain how engagement works: objectives have to be realistic, desirable, and beneficial to the company
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Measure impact
Chaired by Hope William-Smith, Professional Adviser
Optimism and Opportunity for the Future: Sustainable Investing in a Multi Asset Portfolio
We believe a sustainable economy is one that meets the needs of current generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. Analysing the compatibility of an investment with a sustainable economy is one of the fundamental investment factors we consider, alongside the return and diversification opportunities an investment may bring to the portfolio. And we don’t believe such opportunities are limited to equity investing. In this presentation we explore how sustainable criteria can be applied across a multi asset portfolio, and will look at some of the exciting investment opportunities available.
ESG Investing – from conversation to investment
With new guidance on the way from the regulator, how should you consider adapting your existing advice process to incorporate your client’s preferences around the sustainability of their investments? What questions should you ask? What language could you use? What examples are likely to resonate with clients? And then, of course there is the risk of greenwashing. This session will focus upon practical answers to questions posed, and share best practice, based upon our conversations with advisers and other like-minded professionals about how to link that conversation to a suitable ESG investment.
- Explain the concept of ESG investing and how it sits within the range of investment options
- Describe how ESG can potentially impact investment decisions
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Consider how to include ESG considerations in your client conversations and advice process
Responsible investment: How to deliver the right customer outcomes
Recent research states that over 75% of investors are interested in investing responsibly. But there remains a number of misconceptions about how best to build a robust ESG and responsible investing infrastructure that provides the flexibility to meet the needs and preferences of investors. Portfolio manager, Bethan Dixon, will talk through the challenges of responsible investing and provide practical solutions to help you navigate these issues.
By the end of this session, delegates will be able to:
- Explain how to identify your clients’ preferences for responsible and sustainable investments
- Explain how to overcome the challenges of integrating responsible investment into a multi-asset solution
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Identify how WealthSelect’s new range of portfolios provide a solution that can be easily mapped to your clients’ objectives
Chaired by Hope William-Smith, Professional Adviser
London Venue
One Whitehall Place
Thursday 20th October 2022
1 Whitehall Pl, London SW1A 2HE
This venue can be easily accessed via public transport routes.
The nearest tube station is Embankment. and numerous buses stop right outside.