The trillion-dollar faith-driven investment market is expanding fast – but many faiths still lack confidence

Our Faithful Finance course aims to change that. Starts May 20. Book by May 9 for our Early Bird Offer 

Press release: There has been a huge growth of interest in faith-consistent investing in recent years as faith groups – described as the ‘third largest economic power on earth' – increasingly seek to ensure their values are reflected in their finances.  As a result, the faith-driven investment market is expanding rapidly, with faith-based asset owners managing trillions of dollars of investments globally.

The faith-consistent investing (FCI) landscape is also changing, moving beyond its traditional focus on exclusions (ie, choosing not to invest in so-called 'sin stocks') to more active portfolio management, says FaithInvest Executive Chair Dave Zellner, who managed more than US$26 billion in faith-owned assets during 27 years as CIO of Wespath Benefits and Investments.

He explains: 'Today's faith-based investors expect transformative impact with their investments, aligning their portfolios with their faith values, often prioritising the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and addressing systemic risks.'

But global nonprofit FaithInvest's experience shows that for many faith organisations, putting values-driven investing into practice can seem very daunting at first – especially if they lack internal financial or investment expertise. Our research into more than 100 faith investment policies found that nearly half of faith groups do not even mention their faith as having a role in their investment policy.  

Faithful Finance training

That's why we developed our Faithful Finance course to address these challenges. Faithful Finance: An Introduction to Aligning Investments with Faith Values is aimed at faith-based organisations of all religious traditions. 

• Delivered over four 90-minute, live-taught, interactive online sessions

• Covers the fundamantals of faith-consistent investing

• Provides practical tools and strategies to integrate faith principles into investment strategies

• Starts on May 20 and runs to June 10

• Book by May 9 for our Early Bird Offer of £250 (usually £295) 

More than than 100 representatives of faith-based organisations have taken the course so far and it has been very well received, with all respondents to a post-course survey saying they would recommend it. Comments included:

'The whole area is not as daunting as I had imagined it to be, hence my shift in confidence' – Participant

'The confidence it has given me to feel more able to get involved in discussions with our investment advisors' – Participant

'It has empowered me to embody the knowledge and own what we are about as a congregation' – Participant

'I am now more convinced that the way to go today is to root our faith values in all that we do, including our investments, to make an impact' – Participant

'I am more confident that it is possible and profitable (financially and in terms of meeting the goals of our organisation) to make investments in line with our faith values. I now have more tools to help to make this a reality for our organisation' – Participant

Meeting faiths' needs

FaithInvest's Executive Chair Dave Zellner said: 'Faithful Finance is about creating a framework that helps organisations stay true to their mission through their investments while contributing to a sustainable future.

'We are delighted to offer the Faithful Finance course to meet the growing need from faith communities for guidance on aligning their investments with their core faith beliefs. This course equips faith organisations with the knowledge and tools to make investment choices that are both financially sound and aligned with their moral and ethical commitments.' 

Key features of Faithful Finance: An Introduction to Aligning Investments with Faith Values include live sessions, engaging discussions, and breakout groups to ensure participants can collaborate and learn from one another.  .  

Module Highlights:

• Week 1: Exploring the foundational principles of faith-consistent investing.

• Week 2: Tackling challenges in aligning investments with faith values.

• Week 3: Practical steps for integrating faith values into investment policies.

• Week 4: Long-term strategies for maintaining faith-consistent investments. 

The four-week course is designed for faith-based organisations, with content tailored to employees, board or committee members, and volunteers involved with the faith organisation’s financial management or oversight. 

Book by May 9 to capitalise on the Early Bird Offer of £250 per person, after which the cost will be £295 per person; a limited number of bursaries are available.

Visit www.faithinvest.org/faithful-finance-training or email training@faithinvest.org for more information.

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Notes for editor

In a 2021 interview with NCR Online, Iyad Abumoghli, Director of the United Nations Environment Programme's Faith for Earth Initiative, described religions as 'the third-largest economic power on Earth', with 'trillions of dollars in investments'.

FaithInvest is an international, not-for-profit network serving religious groups and faith-based investors. We were founded in 2019 to help faith groups to invest in line with their values. We support the rapidly growing movement of faiths and faith-based asset owners actively using their investments to create a better world – for people and planet. We do not provide investment advice or make investment decisions for faith groups.  www.faithinvest.org