Ethical Investing

What happens when you invest?

For example, by depositing money in a bank you are enabling someone else to borrow that money perhaps to purchase a home. That is the essence of proper banking. Although many banks did stray away from that with disastrous results. They got involved in dubious leveraging of deposits prior to the ‘credit crunch’ of 2008.

What happens when you invest in shares? You are helping that company or companies employ people. The result is that they too can enjoy a form of prosperity.

I would encourage you to think about the effect you have in this world when you do things. That applies equally to your use of money. I remember well the period many years ago when many women stopped buying fur coats. Why? Because they learned of the way that animals were treated in the process of making their luxurious coat.

Whether you like it or not your money will affect others. Real people will be affected by your decisions in this respect. After all, as I quoted in my blog Straight Talk About Money there is no business in the world that is not made up of family, friends and colleagues. This applies both to what you spend your money on and what you invest your money in.

Ethical investing is growing in popularity

A major reason that ethical investing is growing in popularity is that people are coming to realise that they don’t want to invest in companies that:

• exploit their workers;

• produce unhealthy products such a cigarettes;

• manufacture armaments;

• pollute the environment;

• or are involved in various types of pornography.

On the other hand they would like to invest in companies that are having a positive impact on the world:

• by producing alternative forms of clean energy;

• improving people’s lives in the third world;

• or benefitting the environment.

Do you want to gain a greater understanding of the options available for ethical investing? Do you want to consider moving towards prosperity by using ethical investments? Then please refer to the following.