Boutique wealth manager EQ Investors has become a founder partner of Worthstone, the dedicated investment service and knowledge centre for participants in the social impact investment arena.
EQ, which is led by CEO John Spiers, reckons that partnership status enhances EQ’s sustainable investing proposition by providing it with:
- access to independent information on the latest range of social impact investments via social investment portal;
- comprehensive summary of each investment opportunity with an objective review against a number of key criteria;
- social impact investment tool kit for use with clients, internal team and externally with professional connections;
- participation in the Social Investment Academy, the forum for retail social investment advisers and product providers.
Spiers said: “We believe there are significant opportunities to provide our clients with access to social impact investments in this fast-growing market, especially around the government’s social investment tax relief (SITR) initiative.
“As a leader in this space, Worthstone has a vision that aligns with ours – to see social impact investment established as an integral part of the financial planning process for individual investors in the UK.”
Worthstone director Gavin Francis said: : “Worthstone acts as a hub of specialist expertise, providing an interface for the growing community of advisers, planners and wealth managers, as well as product providers, who share the ambition of seeing client money invested for good.
“Social investment is the use of repayable finance to achieve a social as well as a financial return. In 2014 the UK became the first G20 country to introduce a tax relief targeted specifically at investing into social enterprises. Sources estimate that within the next five years a total of £500 million may be invested into this sector.”
EQ says that HM Treasury has applied for EU state aid clearance to increase the limit on the amount of SITR investment an organisation can receive from some £290,000 over three years to £5m per annum (maximum total £15m).
