It’s tailored-made for millennials and their 401(k)s, but so far only a small percentage of asset managers have penetrated the impact investing market. However, that’s about to change.
New research from Cerulli Associates finds that private investments are a growing area of opportunity for asset managers looking to get into the impact investing space. Thus far, only a small portion of managers have penetrated the impact investing market. In Cerulli’s 2016 alternative investments survey, just 14% of institutional asset managers polled indicate that they manage alternative asset impact funds (or thematic investing funds).
Yet a survey conducted by Cerulli in partnership with US SIF shows that over the next two to three years, more than half of asset managers offering responsible investment products expect high demand from foundations (56 percent) and high-net-worth (52 percent) investors.
Moreover, Cerulli’s investment consultant research reveals that more than half (52 percent) of consultants surveyed are evaluating and, in some cases, recommending impact investments to their private wealth and institutional clients.
Cerulli’s research also finds that mutual fund assets dropped for the fourth straight month, losing 0.7 percent in February to end the month at $11.3 trillion. The continued decline is now entirely attributable to performance. Despite underlying market fluctuations, February brought little change to ETF assets, as they held steady at just about $2 trillion. Flows reversed course during the month and totaled nearly $3 billion for the vehicle.