Our most comprehensive study of faith investment policies – coming soon!
- Susie Weldon
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
We are very excited about the forthcoming launch of our Good Intentions 2026 publication in April – our most comprehensive, in-depth analysis of faith investment policies to date, which offers unique insights into the US$5 trillion faith-based investment sector.
This report updates FaithInvest’s ongoing research into how faith groups integrate their beliefs, teachings and values into their investment policies and guidelines (IP&Gs). Originally published in 2022 and updated in 2023, Good Intentions was the first – and remains the only – study to examine faith-based investment policies in depth to assess the extent to which faith values have been integrated into them.
For this 2026 update, we have tripled our database to 275 faith investment policies, strengthened our methodology and engaged more deeply with a wider range of faith traditions and geographies.
As FaithInvest Executive Chair Dave Zellner points out; 'Good Intentions remains the only study of its kind. It is a comprehensive benchmark of faith-consistent investment practices across traditions and geographies.
'And the findings are hopeful: The gap between current practice and best practice represents opportunity, not failure. Strong policies exist in every tradition. This research shows organisations what's possible and provides guidance on how to achieve it.'
So what have we learned?
Our previous reports found that while many faith-based asset owners (FBAOs) acknowledge the role of faith in guiding investment choices, fewer had translated those principles into clear, actionable investment policies and guidelines. Since then, we have seen a growing recognition among faith organisations that faith-consistent investing is not just about exclusionary screens or avoiding harm – it is a practical expression of faith leadership and stewardship in the economic sphere.
However, Good Intentions 2026 still shows that much remains to be done. The report finds a striking disconnect: 'Organisations with strong faith identities frequently fail to express that identity in their investment policies.'
Criterion One: Faith documentation
We'll outline more about this and other findings when Good Intentions 2026 is published in April. But here is a sneak preview of our results for the first criterion in our 10-point FCI Assessment framework: Clear articulation of faith values.
We consider this to be the foundation of faith-consistent investing. Where faith foundations are not clearly documented, the result is not simply weaker faith alignment, but reduced mandate clarity, increased dependence on individual judgement, and a growing gap between an organisation’s stated mission and its lived investment practice.
FaithInvest's 10-point faith-consistent investing framework
The results
Across the 275 assessed organisations, Criterion 1 received an average score of 2.5 out
of 5, indicating moderate overall performance and considerable variation across the
275 policies assessed.
Just over half of organisations (51%) scored 3 or above, demonstrating a meaningful attempt to connect faith identity with investment practice.
However, 49% scored 2 or below, revealing substantial room for improvement across the field.
Most notably, 29% of organisations scored 0 or 1, meaning their investment policies contained minimal or no faith-specific content despite being issued by faith-based institutions.
At the other end of the spectrum, a small minority (8%) achieved exemplary integration, demonstrating that strong and explicit faith documentation is achievable across different traditions and organisational contexts.
As we can see from the results from this one criterion, Good Intentions 2026 serves both as an update and a call to action: to move beyond intention toward deeper integration, greater transparency, and more active expression of faith through investment.
As we look ahead, the question is not whether faith values belong in investing – they always have – but how intentionally and effectively they are being applied in practice. – Good Intentions 2026
Good Intentions 2026 will be launched at our Faith in the Common Good international FCI forum in Paris in April.
