Groupe d’investissement éthique (GIÉ) / Ethical Investors Group (EIG) has adopted a multi-faceted mission:
To purchase equity in firms whose products, services and processes are apt to play a key role in an environmentally-sustainable and socially-equitable economy.
To provide capital – thus opportunity – to economically disadvantaged individuals with promising business projects.
To demonstrate that reasonable financial returns can be obtained in tandem with the provision of significant environmental and social dividends.
To promote socially- and environmentally-responsible business practices and investment decisions, and to encourage formation of initiatives similar to EIG.
The Ethical Investment Group (EIG) invests in businesses and people whose products or projects help to ensure an environmentally sustainable and equitable future. We hold approximately 60% of our portfolio in equities, i.e. securities traded on the stock market, and 40% in the form of “community investments”, which may take the form of: loans to microcredit organizations; purchase of private shares in cooperatives; and investment in various types of bonds: green, social, sustainable and community.
Equities Investment. Our aim is to purchase shares in companies whose products and technologies are ecologically innovative and whose labour and governance practices meet high standard of fairness and transparency. While no company is perfect, we try to invest in those that offer the greatest social returns, while at the same time offering a reasonable financial return. We also make a point of holding our positions as long as possible, thus supporting the companies when speculation becomes a threat. We believe that equity financing is crucial to providing the necessary capital to enable publicly-traded companies to develop, improve and market new products on a large scale.
Community Investment. These are investments in organizations that support business initiatives developed by small entrepreneurs and individuals who do not have access to credit from mainstream financial institutions. Many of these investments fund intermediary organizations that provide not only financing for such initiatives but also the necessary business support to help them succeed.