New research from Barclays Wealth reveals a stark difference between how people manage their own investments compared with investments intended for their children’s future – with attitude to risk and ESG investments both impacted by starting a family.
Since having children, 44 per cent of Brits admit that their risk appetite had been altered, with 72 per cent choosing to invest in lower risk options from that point onwards.
Separately, more than 55 per cent of parents admit they make a more conscious effort to invest sustainably for their family compared to choices they make regarding investments intended for themselves. Interestingly it’s mothers who are more likely to consider sustainable investment options for their family (62 per cent), whereas fathers place less value on investing sustainably (50 per cent).
By contrast, when deciding on investments for their own personal portfolio, 2 in 5 (40 per cent) admit that savings made during the pandemic has encouraged them to take more risk with their investments and that expected dividends (30 per cent) are more than twice as important as an investment’s ESG credentials (14 per cent).
When asked which sectors they considered when investing for their family’s future, sustainable energy (31 per cent) came out top, with mining (9 per cent) and tobacco (6 per cent) less favoured.
