Seventy-seven per cent of millennials are prioritising socially responsible and impactful investing, a new global survey by deVere Group has revealed.

The poll quizzed an international selection of 1,125 millennials, those born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, about their investment decision making.

More than three-quarters of respondents cited ESG investing as their top priority when considering investment opportunities.

While traditional reasons such as anticipated returns (10%), past performance (7%), risk tolerance (4%) and tactical allocation (2%) were also revealed to be important factors for respondents, deVere CEO and founder, Nigel Green, said these were ‘no longer enough.’

“Indeed, ESG considerations now sit at the heart of that process, Green commented. “Millennials appear to be leading the charge in socially responsible and impactful investing. They are keen to look for investment solutions that are progressive and forward-looking.

“And they might be right to do so too. Research has shown investments that score well in terms of ESG credentials often out-perform the market and have lower volatility over the long-run.

“For this reason, and importantly because the biggest-ever generational transfer of wealth – likely to be around $30trn – from baby boomers to millennials will take place in the next couple of years, ESG investing is set to grow exponentially in the 2020s.

“As responsible investing becomes increasingly mainstream, and millennials become the major beneficiaries of the transfer of wealth, we can also expect institutional investors, such as pension funds, amongst others, to pile into ESG over the next few years.”

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