Conscientious XR Investor?
- 50% Yes. I must invest in my future
- 22% Nah! Greed is great
- 20% Principles enter my mind
- 8% Sure way to lose money
You are what you invest in, and members of the Invstr community take their portfolios personally. That doesn’t mean we’ve gone full biblical, however! Ethical investing may have won a 50% backing in our latest poll, but gone are the days of “profit” as profanity and all money being evil. Investors know it isn’t a binary choice anymore between making money and making a difference.
Today, companies are scored on their environmental and social impacts. IMF studies prove that demanding an A+ score won’t leave 70% of our community poorer than the rest, so like it or not, we’re all invested in planet Earth, and low-cost, done-for-you funds like the S&P 500 ESG Index count as viable ways to help save it.
Or do they? Before throwing rotten vegetables at 30% of the Invstr community who voted “greed” (because we’ll never agree on what’s ethical versus what’s not), let’s hear a counter-argument!
When a company goes public, its owners are raising money by selling their stakes of ownership to the outside world. On debut day, most initial trades indeed put money into the pockets of insiders. However, it’s not a donation, and from then on, the stock exchange is like a giant flea market!
If you invest $1000 in ExxonMobil, ExxonMobil never sees that $1000. You’re only doing business with another investor, and that kind of money doesn’t move the needle enough for Exxon’s CEO to write a thank you card. That’s why many of that 30% will prefer not to boycott stocks, but to boycott products instead.
An intriguing quandary, but the Invstr community knows where it stands! #OurPlanet!
