Advisors late to the impact investing game may have missed their chance -- there’s now a digital platform for that.
Silicon Valley-based Motif Investing is introducing Motif Impact, a values-oriented digital investing solution.
Environmental, social and corporate-governance oriented indexes have been proliferating in recent years, so perhaps it was only a matter of time before a robot followed suit. Just don’t call Motif’s service a robo-advisor, says Hardeep Walia, Motif founder and CEO.
“There’s no such thing, a robo-advisor is not really offering advice,” says Walia. “I don’t think any digital tool gives you advice today. We view this as automated investing -- we give you the tools, we give you the model. We want to offer convenience for those who want to understand their investments, change the market assumptions, change the asset allocation model or change the glide assumptions.”
Motif Impact allows users to select from different “motifs,” or thematic baskets of up to 30 different stocks and ETFs, to target an impact of their choice.
Walia, a former Microsoft executive, founded Motif as a broker-dealer and thematic investing platform to allow users to trade motifs, which can include fractional shares of stocks and ETFs, at a flat price of $9.95, and to trade an individual security within their motifs for $4.95. Users can select from a lineup of more than 150 professionally constructed motifs, create their own motif, or purchase one of more than 300,000 community-made Motifs designed by other users.
Motif Impact will use the platform’s digital investing solution to help users determine their risk tolerance, allocate to investments and set a glide path. Trading to rebalance user accounts occurs at no cost, and subscribers can replace investments within their motifs without incurring commissions or fees.
Walia argues that impact investing will be a persistent trend, noting its popularity among women, high-net-worth investors and younger generations.
“Since the 2016 elections, people are very concerned about their values,” says Walia. “These are no longer private conversations over the dinner table, they’re having out-loud, public conversations about their values and they’re becoming more worried about how their dollars are allocated.”
To support the service’s launch, Motif conducted a survey of 825 U.S. investors from Jan. 21 to Jan. 29, 2017, to gauge their investment mindset and views on impact investing.