Impacting investing is steadily creeping into family office investment strategies, according to a report released Monday by US SIF, the sustainable and responsible investment forum.
Based on interviews with nine family offices, the study concluded that wealthy investors want their investing to have a positive impact on the world.
The report shows family offices are making more frequent inquiries to family office membership associations, financial advisors and consultants about sustainable, responsible and impact investing (SRI), says US SIF. The information is drawn from anecdotal evidence from the interviews, with no minimum wealth level set for the family offices and no statistical evidence drawn from the interviews.
However, US SIF says the family office representatives expressed a growing interest in SRI investing, even among families that are not now making such investments.
The Family Office Association reported that as many as 50 percent of its300 members have an interest in SRI, says US SIF.
Meanwhile, the Family Wealth Alliance believes that more family offices will be doing SRI in the next several years, US SIF says.
There are about 3,000 U.S. family offices, with total assets under management of $1.7 trillion.
The areas that are generating interest among family offices for impact investing are environmental issues, human rights, supply chain issues, local and community investing, sustainably grown food and technology innovators that advance social and environmental progress, according to the study.