7 in 10 Singaporeans to be 'responsible' investors after seeing pandemic effects

They are now considering ESG and sustainability as factors in investing.

About seven in 10 Singaporeans (69%) have become more motivated to invest their money responsibly and sustainably because of COVID-19, according to a study by St. James’s Place (SJP) Wealth Management Asia.

According to the Wealth, Healthy Planet—The Power of Personal Wealth in Sustainable Development study, 64% of Singaporeans now include environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and sustainability as factors in selecting their investment, rising to 72% for investors in higher income brackets or those with income of S$200,000 and above per annum.

It noted that the importance of ESG factors in the investment decisions are significantly higher for the younger investors at 67% among the aged 25 to 34 years old, compared to the 60% amongst investors aged 45 and above. Half of the investors in Singapore also said that they divest from companies that do not operate sustainably.

The study also found that 59% of Singaporeans also actively seek this information before investing.

“COVID-19 has spotlighted many of the critical sustainability issues we face and motivated investors to play a role with how and where they invest. There is a tremendous opportunity for private wealth to play a growing role in driving forward sustainability agendas across Singapore and Asia,” Gary Harvey, CEO of SJP Singapore said.

However, the study also found barriers to responsible investment with 54% of Singaporeans believing that they need to compromise returns to invest responsibly and with 42% expressing concerns about the performance of sustainable investments.

Other concerns for investing more responsibly include lack of knowledge, difficulty in accessing the knowledge, and lack of sustainable investment options.

SJP said, there is a need to bridge the “intention-action gap” through credible financial advice, noting that 87% of Singaporeans demand better financial advice and knowledge in investments.

Follow the link for more news on

St. James’s Place Wealth Management Asia

investment

Reaching the people who run Asia's businesses is harder than it used to be.

Inboxes are crowded. Attention is short. The executives you most want to reach — the founders, CFOs, and operators who actually move budgets — are the hardest to find through the usual channels. If you're building a company, a category, or a reputation, you already know this.

We've spent twenty years building the room they read. Singapore Business Review is where senior decision makers in Singapore and across Southeast Asia come for business coverage they can't get elsewhere — in print, online, and in person at the summits and roundtables we host across seven markets.

If you have something these readers should know about — a point of view worth publishing, a product worth their attention, an event worth their time — we'd like to hear what you're trying to do.

Book a meeting

| Or download the media kit (PDF)

240,000 senior readers quarterly in print Top 1,700 Singapore companies reached

7 markets across Southeast Asia