Starting with Values

The Buddha said nothing ever exists entirely independently; everything is in relation to everything else. This holistic philosophy is one on which the US–based Abacus Wealth Partners has built a successful business—one committed to making the world a better place.

From a chance meeting between its two founders two decades ago, Abacus has grown into an innovative and progressive wealth management business that serves more than 1,600 clients out of seven offices and with more than $US2 billion in assets under management.

The co–founders’ Buddhist meditation practices, which stress the interconnected nature of the universe and respect for all life, led the firm to become an early adopter of sustainable investing. Indeed, Abacus’ explicitly stated mission is to “expand what’s possible with money.”

“We were never not going to go down the sustainability path, simply because it was who we were,” Abacus President J.D. Bruce told me during a recent visit to Australia. “The investment offering is a net result of who we are and what we care about, as opposed to the other way around.”

J.D. says the Abacus approach is not so much built around sustainable investments, but around the clients’ values, ones that are articulated early in the discovery process and which are put front and centre of the advisor–client relationship.

“We’ve found that what deepens the relationship is asking people what they care about, not necessarily talking to them about a sustainability solution,” he says. “In other words, we don’t try to educate people about what we want to talk about; we help them uncover what they most care about and show them how their values can be the central guiding principles of their financial plan and their portfolio.”

Abacus’ overall mission of expanding what’s possible with money is broken down into four core values— serving others, doing what they are best at and love most, listening deeply and speaking with care and bringing joy to what they do.

“We’ve never separated our values from our business,” J.D. says. “Fundamentally, that’s what it comes down to. Once you break down that wall, some decisions become
very clear.”

Frustrated at the limited options for ESG investing, the firm approached Dimensional in 2007 about developing a core sustainability solution that met the needs of its clients, who tend to be cultural creatives with a deep interest in the environmental impact of their investments.

“DFA came up with a good solution,” he said—one that combined a sound methodology for environmental screening, as well as the efficiency, broad diversification and rigorous, evidence–supported investment tilts that Dimensional is known for.

Now, a decade later, sustainability–themed portfolios are Abacus’ staple offering. And clients happily embrace them, or at the very least accept them.

“About 50% love the approach and the other 50% don’t care either way,” he says. “The fact is nobody thinks it’s a negative, though some are sceptical about whether it will have an impact. We tell those people that once they know their investments align with their values, they can think about what they want to do as a consumer. It is never going to be just one thing.”

In any case, Abacus’ default offering of sustainability portfolios comes at a time of rising client interest in such solutions. Recent data showed global sustainable investment assets rose by 34% to $US30.7 trillion in the two years to early 2018.¹

Asked then why he thinks more advisors don’t offer sustainability as an option, J.D. says it’s usually fear of unintended consequences or a fear of seeming less informed on the subject than their client.

For advisors still hesitant, he recommends they begin by speaking to their clients about what they really care about.

“Everyone has values. And those values usually boil down to the same things. In the end, we all value people and we all value family and we all value health. It’s the flavour of the values that change from person to person. Once you understand that and meet people at that level, then you can deliver the same solutions to meet different values but couched in a different way.”

Or, as Buddhism proclaims, if a person has the right mindset, the actions they perform will be beneficial not just for themselves, but for the whole world.