Family offices are increasingly focusing on the returns achieved through ESG investing amid shifting priorities, analysis from Ocorian has shown.

Its study of family office professionals found that 99 per cent agreed that ESG principles were a ‘key consideration’ for family office investment priorities, while 80 per cent considered them a part of their fiduciary duty.

However, Ocorian identified some disagreement about ESG as part of fiduciary duty, with 14 per cent of family office professionals stating that ESG was part of fiduciary duty if it makes returns, and 6 per cent felt indifferent or believed that ESG was not part of fiduciary duty.

It also found a “shift in views” over how the focus on ESG principles as part of fiduciary duty will develop over the next three years.

Nealy two thirds (61 per cent) of family office professionals believed the focus on ESG principles from a fiduciary perspective will only be tenable if ESG investing is making acceptable returns, while 19 per cent said the focus on ESG principles was only for reputational purposes.

Around one in eight (12 per cent) stated they had not previously had a focus on ESG principles from a fiduciary perspective but that this was changing, and 8 per cent said it had never been a focus and that this will not change.

“ESG investing is a core part of family offices investment strategy and in many cases is seen as part of their fiduciary duty,” commented Ocorian head of family office, Amy Collins.

“However, the survey shows that increasingly family offices are assessing ESG investing in the same way as other investment strategies and over the next three years will be focusing on returns much more than possibly, they did in the past.”

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