Wealthsimple, a Canadian financial advising platform, launched its Socially Responsible Investing portfolios in the UK. This is the first time that a robo-advisor investing tool has been used for social and sustainable purposes in the country.

Through the service, investors are now able to invest in companies working towards socially conscious objectives globally while optimising their returns. The service offered is a low-cost automated financial advisor providing a diversified investment policy. Companies selected by Wealthsimple’s board, going through a strict selection process, are working to solve environmental, social or governance issues, being in fields such as cleantech innovation, fair labour standards and low carbon emissions.

Wealthsimple, which now cumulates GBP 1 billion in assets under management globally, launched last September in the UK. The new service was rolled out on the British market following the strong demand for social investment products:

“We always look to our clients for feedback on which features they want to see next, and SRI has been requested from the first day we launched in the UK […] It’s reflective of what matters to investors today, and we’re really excited to be the first digital wealth manager to introduce an SRI offering, and to make it incredibly simple and accessible.” said Toby Triebel, CEO Europe, Wealthsimple.

By Jean Leguy, Research Coordinator at Holland FinTech