Faiths representing billions of dollars in investments to gather in Paris in April to discuss collaborating for more impact

Press release: 17 March 2026

Faith groups representing billions of dollars in investments are convening in Paris in April for a unique inter-religious forum to discuss how they can work together to use their combined investment power for the common good.

The world's religions hold significant investments on the global markets, together representing trillions of dollars of assets under management (AUM), and have been described as the 'third-largest economic power on Earth'. 

Representatives of 30 institutional faith-based asset owners and networks, including faith leaders and top-level investment professionals, will meet at the Collège des Bernardins in Paris for the Faith in the Common Good forum on April 16-17.

This is the first time that such a wide range of faith traditions from around the world – 27 faith traditions from four major religions – will come together to discuss practical steps to enable coordinated action at scale, including the potential for a multi-faith framework to address critical global environmental and social challenges.

The ground-breaking Faith in the Common Good forum is organised by the Collège des Bernardins (whose President, Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, is also President of IOR, known as Vatican Bank), and FaithInvest, a global non-profit that supports faiths to invest in line with their values.

Jean-Baptiste de Franssu

Jean-Baptiste de Franssu said: "This conference is the first of its kind in the world. Over the past 20 years, ethical finance – especially ESG – has grown rapidly.

Yet while faith communities have always thought about 'the right use of money', it is only in recent years that there has been a collective growing awareness and desire among faith groups to be more active in this space. 

"Today, believers are increasingly eager to align their investments with their values, and faith denominations are stepping up through faith-consistent investing. This conference brings them together to share best practices, harness their shared values and, crucially, consider how they can create more impact by collaborating more effectively.  

"United by a commitment to the common good, faith communities could have the power to transform the world through the financial markets."

This initiative emerges at a pivotal moment when worldwide faith-based institutions, which underpin civil society at every level, possess unique independence to pursue values-based investing in a world of shifting political winds and contradictory stakeholder demands. The Forum is intended to be the first in a series of gatherings over the next two years.

Dave Zellner, Executive Chair of FaithInvest, said: "Addressing the systemic risks that threaten our environmental and economic future requires capital deployed at a scale that no single institution can achieve alone.

"Faith organisations collectively hold trillions in assets and share fundamental values that transcend denominational boundaries.

"The Paris Forum is a first, critical step toward determining whether the will exists among diverse faith-based investors to build the kind of coalition that can move markets and drive the structural change our world urgently needs.”

Martin Palmer

Martin Palmer, Founding President of FaithInvest, said: "Faith groups are significant stakeholders in the planet. They run 50% of all schools worldwide (64% in sub-Saharan Africa), a third of all universities, a quarter of all healthcare, and are one of the most significant investment blocs in the world.

"Given the size of their assets and influence, I believe the faiths alone, through their actions, could make the crucial difference to the world's efforts to redefine development, halt irreversible climate change and reverse environmental destruction.

"This is within our grasp, we just have to recognise it."

The Forum is supported by our Launch Patron, CCLA Investment Management Limited, a pioneer in ethical investment and stewardship, and our Launch Sponsors, Amundi Asset Management, Federated Hermes Limited, Ascension Investment Management and Anthos Fund & Asset Management.

CCLA Chief Executive Peter Hugh Smith said: “We continue to see increasing interest in faith consistent investing in the UK. Despite ethical investment being pioneered by faith organisations, the choices for faith investors remain limited. With this conference, we see gathering momentum for a movement that has the power to do much good in the world. We wholeheartedly welcome this and stand ready to support our clients to align their investments with their values.”

More information is available on FaithInvest's Paris Forum web page.    

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Notes for editors

Faith-based investments: 

• The Oxford Faith-Aligned Impact Finance Project at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, mapped 360 organisations across the world in the Abrahamic and Dharmic traditions, with identified total net assets valued at approximately US$5 trillion across four main religious groups.

• In 2021, Iyad Abumoghli, director of the United Nations Environment Programme's Faith for Earth Initiative, described faith groups as as 'the third-largest economic power on Earth'.

Organisers:

• Collège des Bernardins: A jewel of 13th-century Cistercian architecture in the heart of Paris, the Collège des Bernardins is a vibrant centre for conferences, culture, training, and dialogue. Its mission is to promote an authentic, cultural and intellectual dialogue between society and Christian wisdom. collegedesbernardins.fr

• FaithInvest: An international, not-for-profit organisation serving founded in 2019 to support the rapidly growing movement of faith-based asset owners actively using their investments to create a better world. We do not provide investment advice or manage investments for faith groups. faithinvest.org                                                                                     

Our partners:

Our Launch Patron is CCLA Investment Management, a pioneer of faith-consistent investing.

CCLA Investment Management Limited was born through the launch of the Church of England Investment Fund in 1958. It has a long track record of instigating positive change for a better world with its work on climate, modern slavery and mental health, and invests on behalf of parishes, churches, dioceses, cathedrals and charities of all denominations. CCLA has £14.9 billion of AUM as at 31 January 2026.

Our Launch Sponsors are:

Amundi Asset Management, Europe's largest asset manager, Amundi manages more than €2.4tn in AUM and serves 100 million clients worldwide with a broad range of investment capabilities and a strong emphasis on responsible investing.

Federated Hermes Limited, a global leader in active, responsible investment. Guided by the conviction that responsible investing is the best way to create long-term wealth, it manages US$902.6bn in AUM and advises on US$2.3tn for clients worldwide.

Anthos Fund & Asset Management: Established almost 100 years ago to provide comprehensive values-based asset management and investment advisory services rooted in the values of sustainability, human dignity and good corporate citizenship.

Ascension Investment Management: A US-based, mission-driven, SEC-registered investment adviser, headquartered in St Louis, Missouri, that primarily serves faith-based organisations seeking institutional strength and values alignment.