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Few firms can be said to engage in corporate social responsibility both as an organization and on behalf of its clients as much as Morgan Stanley, which receives this year’s award for North America’s best bank for corporate social responsibility (CSR). In wealth management, Morgan Stanley’s Investing with Impact Platform offers more than 130 products and funds for both institutional and retail clients. By the end of last year, it had more than $5 billion in assets under management – half way to its 2018 goal.
The firm also launched the Sustainable Impact Model Portfolio last year that has 20 to 30 public companies that each address climate change, water scarcity, food availability, health and wellness, and aging populations. In the institutional securities business, the firm is a leader in the green bond market, mobilizing more than $8.6 billion last year in such investments. Morgan Stanley also created the first neighbourhood bonds that increase the supply of affordable housing and promote energy-efficient homes.
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Audrey Choi, |
Environmental, social and governance factors can now be embedded in analyst valuations. Audrey Choi, chief executive of Morgan Stanley’s Institute for Sustainable Investing, says: “We have seen analysts change their calls on stocks as a result. For example, one company that was doing well in CSR had a halo effect because it was having a material impact on waste and reduced employee turnover.”
Choi oversees programmes where students from all over the world can pitch new financial solutions to solve social and environmental challenges while delivering market-rate returns. It offers the same opportunities to its own employees.
In addition to encouraging volunteering, Morgan Stanley runs a pro bono advisory initiative, where the best and brightest employees are gathered into teams to work with non-profit organizations to advise on their strategic growth. The bank also has an environmental and social finance employee-led forum.
“The real message is that Morgan Stanley is committed to a vision that finance can have a fundamental and meaningful impact on these social global issues. This isn’t up to Washington or Paris to figure out, so go back to your desk and figure it out,” says Choi.
