Sustainable and Impact Investing

More companies are changing the way they do business. They're examining not only their profit potential but also how their practices impact the environment and society at large.

Sustainable and impact investing offers you the opportunity to invest in companies that are working towards better ways of doing business with innovative approaches to support their long term performance.

Help to solve society’s biggest and growing challenges. Live out your beliefs. Invest to reflect issues that matter to you while pursuing your investment goals.

It’s easy to start

A flexible approach and multiple investment options make it easy for you to start investing for sustainability and impact. We can help you adjust your existing portfolio, add a single solution, or choose a new model portfolio.

Choose the impact approaches you prefer through our A-B-C framework.

Your Merrill advisor helps to ensure your sustainable and impact investing strategy reflects your risk tolerances, time horizons, and preferences through actionable planning and objective advice.

Your Merrill advisor can help customize your sustainable investing strategy based on your preferences and motivations. We can also review your current portfolio to help you become aware of what you currently own and find potential opportunities to align your investments with your sustainability-driven goals.

Regardless of how much you direct toward sustainable strategies, your investments can make a difference because you're part of a larger group of sustainable investors helping to drive meaningful change. Your portfolio can contribute towards responsible business practices and lead companies to be more environmentally and socially responsible.

The case for sustainable investing

• Global ESG assets are on track to exceed $53 trillion by 2025, representing more than a third of the $140.5 trillion in projected total assets under management.¹
• 68% of ESG indices beat their local benchmarks on a global basis, reaching the highest hit rate in recent five years in 2021.²
• 69% of U.S. consumers are actively using their wallets to support brands or industries that benefit the environment or society. And a further 20% say they are interested in learning more.³
• 77% of investors want their advisors to ensure that their investment strategy is aligned with their personal values.⁴
• 73% of U.S. consumers see sustainable investing as an opportunity, 72% see sustainable investing as innovative and 69% agree that sustainable investing is the future.⁵

Make better informed investment decisions

Some investors worry that creating positive impact with their portfolio means giving up returns. However, sustainable and impact investing may often offer competitive performance and appropriate levels of risk compared to traditional investments.

Companies that incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into their decision-making have the potential to deliver competitive returns over the long term—because they’re focused on creating lasting value. Their practices may even help mitigate the impact of risks beyond their control, like droughts, high energy costs, or labor unrest.

Sustainable and impact investments at Merrill undergo assessments by our Chief Investment Office for the quality and competitiveness of the investment strategy as well as analysis of the intentionality and depth of environmental, social and governance (ESG) integration.

Your portfolio's impact

Monitoring progress is an important part of sustainable and impact investing. We add an extra layer of analysis to review investments using environmental, social, and governance metrics. We view impact using a framework of four pillars, allowing us to look across industries and to provide consistent but evolving perspective.

_{Please note that the examples under each theme are illustrative of the types of investments possible, and are not necessarily strategies available today. Investment strategies with a local or targeted market focus may be limited.}

What are we doing as a company?

As one of the world’s largest financial institutions, we take a key role in building a more resilient future. Through our strategy of responsible growth, we are deploying capital towards a more sustainable economy—helping to create jobs, develop communities, foster economic mobility, and address society’s biggest challenges around the world.

Learn more about what we’re doing to foster sustainability and have a positive impact.

Sustainable Investing Strategies

Managed Strategies⁶

Mutual funds, thematic exchange-traded funds and separately managed accounts (SMAs)

Alternative Investments⁶

Sustainable private investments available for qualified investors

CIO Sustainable Total Portfolios⁶

CIO portfolios implementing sustainable strategies

Customized Solutions⁶

SMAs and customized ESG solutions through third-party asset managers

Capital Markets Solutions⁶,⁷

Green bonds, sustainability bonds and social impact bonds