Sustainability Community

For those interested in good practice in incorporating sustainability into investment advice, PIMFA, as secretariat to the Advisers' Sustainability Group, has published the industry-led Sustainability in Practice: Guidance for Advisers and Trainers, alongside an open letter to the FCA highlighting outstanding areas where the Group believes further regulatory clarity is needed.

Developed over three years with representation from across the industry, the guide provides a useful practical reference for financial advisers, discretionary wealth managers and those responsible for adviser training and competence, bringing together sustainability considerations across the advice process.

Key areas covered include:

• understanding sustainability concepts, terminology and the evolving regulatory framework;
• identifying and exploring clients' sustainability preferences;
• incorporating those preferences into suitability and investment recommendations;
• understanding and assessing sustainability-related investment products and disclosures;
• communicating sustainability characteristics and trade-offs clearly with clients; and
• supporting adviser knowledge, training and competence.

Worth a read both as a practical guide and as a helpful overview of where the industry sees continuing challenges in embedding sustainability consistently within investment advice.