Which ethical saving / investment?

[andygates]

Most of you will know my ninja skilz with money. So I'm throwing myself on your Motley wisdom here: I have a bit of cash that needs to be squirreled away. I'm thinking an ethical 30-day ISA.

Ecology Building Society do one with instant access, 4.1% and a 1% bonus if you leave it alone; Triodos do a 33-day notice, 4.5% one.  What other savings / investment products are out there for this sort of sum and return?  I'm not averse to a little risk - is there such a thing as a green investment fund into which I could buy?  Is a grand worth the fees and faff? 

Help me, Obi Wodge, you're my only hope...

Comments

[andygates.livejournal.com]

Well, I don't want the loot locked away for too long. And I don't think I have enough to make sharemangling worth the commission charges. Anyway, I personally think share-land is Babylon and a fount of evil...

Triodos Bank's Ethical Mini-ISA blurb says they hunt down investment companies who have a greener-than-green pedigree: wind turbines and bike rickshaws and fairtrade and organic farms, that sort of thing. That's pretty darn green by my book and the bloke from Cycles Maximus in their bumf only makes me buy their pitch even more. The 33-day lock-in smells nice to my itchy Ebay finger without being a total hideaway.

Ecology Building Society's Mini-ISA is much the same, I've had one before; the rate is lower but they loan only to green builds in the UK. So if you want to feel like a little green Rowntree, that's the way to go.

Zopa look even more fun. Reading through their blurb, the best returns are on long, high-risk loans but that's always the way. Risk is mitigated by spreading loans among lenders so a £500 loan might be a bunch of £10 and £20 loanlets - the bad debt becomes a statistic at that point, not a spectre. In terms of social lending I know from personal experience that the worse your score, the more you usually need loot, so I'm quite tempted to offer up on that. There's a lending lock-in of 1-5 years.

So I think shares are outside my wedge for now; I'm tempted to split this grand 50:50 between a Triodos ISA and a one-year high-return lending account on Zopa.

You wait, the van'll have its engine fall out now.