Morgan Stanley Wealth Management today announced the launch of a Racial Equity Investing Tool Kit as part of its Investing with Impact Platform. Investors will now have access to a range of investments and supporting resources to advance the goals of racial equity and social justice.
According to a survey conducted by Morgan Stanley Institute for Sustainable Investing, 71% of individual investors identify multicultural diversity, which incorporates elements of race, ethnicity and culture, as an area of interest for their investment portfolios.
“Morgan Stanley is committed to supporting diversity, equity and inclusion across all racial, ethnic and gender identities. The launch of the Racial Equity Investing Tool Kit is a great embodiment of values in action for our wealth management clients who have interest in using their capital to generate positive environmental and social outcomes,” said Kara Underwood, Head of Diversity and Inclusion for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
“While we are excited by this groundbreaking work and the ability for our clients to invest in dimensions of diversity, equity and inclusion, we also know there is much more work to be done. To that end, last September we established an Investment Office focused on partnering with asset managers to expand our diverse manager offering as well as to systematically evaluate all managers on their approach to diversity in terms of their own talent management,” said Lisa Shalett, Chief Investment Officer for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management.
The Investing with Impact Platform has highlighted for its Advisors and clients investment strategies that are at least 50% women and/or minority-owned since 2015. The Racial Equity Investing Tool Kit provides additional actionable insights for investors including our proprietary investment framework which identifies ways to mitigate risk and pursue opportunities across a number of approaches, including:
- Diverse ownership: Investment strategies at asset management firms owned by, or with significant representation of, racial or ethnic minorities.
- Solutions: Investment strategies that invest in managers and companies seeking to alleviate social disparities, for example: by providing access to capital, affordable housing & community services, criminal justice reform, economic inclusion, education and more.
- Leaders: Investment strategies that incorporate a range of environmental, social, governance (ESG) criteria, including racial equity criteria focused in diverse representation across human capital, policies supportive of attracting and retaining talented diverse employees.
- Restriction Screening: Investment strategies that minimize or avoid exposure to companies, sectors or geographies with lagging racial equity records, from companies lagging in diverse representation or that provide services that are harmful to communities of color.
Clients, working in partnership with a Financial Advisor can utilize Morgan Stanley Impact Quotient® (Morgan Stanley IQ), a proprietary application to formalize their impact goals and then evaluate their portfolio on over 100 social and environmental impact preferences. This can include impact goals related to diversity in leadership, gender equity, and increasing access to finance, education and health care.
The Morgan Stanley Investing with Impact Platform has a strong track record of helping clients align their investments with their environmental and social goals. Launched in 2012, Investing with Impact today represents more than $60 billion in client assets under management across 15 internally-managed Impact Investing Models and 160+ third-party separately managed accounts, mutual funds, ETFs, alternatives and accounts with custom mandates dedicated to sustainable and impact investing including $12 Billion in women- and minority-owned investment products. To visit the website, go to www.morganstanley.com/impactinvesting.
The Racial Equity Investing Tool Kit is the seventh in a series of thematic Took Kits. Other Tool Kits include Catholic Values, Jewish Values, Gender Diversity, Mission Align 360⁰, Climate Change and Fossil Fuel Aware Investing and Sustainable Retirement. For more information about Morgan Stanley’s Racial Equity Tool Kit, please visit https://www.morganstanley.com/articles/racial-equity-investing-guide.
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, a global leader, provides access to a wide range of products and services to individuals, businesses and institutions, including brokerage and investment advisory services, financial and wealth planning, cash management and lending products and services, annuities and insurance, retirement and trust services.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a leading global financial services firm providing investment banking, securities, wealth management and investment management services. With offices in more than 41 countries, the Firms employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals. For more information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.
We have prepared this document and the output from the MSIQ tool solely for informational purposes. You should not definitively rely upon it or use it to form the definitive basis for any decision, contract, commitment or action whatsoever, with respect to any proposed transaction or otherwise. This material and the MSIQ tool do not provide individually tailored investment advice. Information derived from MSIQ has been prepared without regard to the individual financial circumstances and objectives of persons who receive it. The strategies and/or investments discussed therein may not be appropriate for all investors. Morgan Stanley Wealth Management recommends that investors independently evaluate particular investments and strategies, and encourages investors to seek the advice of a Financial Advisor. The appropriateness of a particular investment or strategy will depend on an investor’s individual circumstances and objectives. This material is not an offer to buy or sell any security or to participate in any trading strategy. The mention of any specific security or company herein is for illustrative purposed only and does not constitute a recommendation. Asset allocation does not guarantee a profit or protect against a loss.
Investment returns will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares when redeemed may be worth more or less than original cost. Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives and risks as well as charges and expenses.
The returns on a portfolio consisting primarily of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) aware investments may be lower or higher than a portfolio that is more diversified or where decisions are based solely on investment considerations. Because ESG criteria exclude some investments, investors may not be able to take advantage of the same opportunities or market trends as investors that do not use such criteria.
This publication is based on information from multiple sources and Morgan Stanley makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of information from sources outside of Morgan Stanley. The investment examples are for illustrative purposes only and should not be deemed a recommendation to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or investment products.
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Christine Jockle
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