Our ii ACE 40 selections are:
- High-quality companies chosen from the widest possible range of ethical investments
- From different sectors and regions, with risk options from core to adventurous
- Designed to suit ALL investors
- Chosen for their potential to deliver strong financial performance
- Managed in a genuinely ethical manner – there is no ‘greenwashing’ of information that aims to mislead about the environmental credentials of a company
Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance.
The ACE 40 list offers a filtered selection of collective investment vehicles for all investors, new or experienced. We aim to provide a menu of high-quality choices across a broad variety of markets and investment types.
Tools
Ethical growth portfolio – designed to give you an idea about how you can build your own balanced ethical portfolio.
How to use the ii ACE 40
The ii ACE 40 is sorted into asset groups, investment categories and ACE ethical styles.
Asset groups include global equities and fixed-income options, while the investment categories suit the type of investor you are. These range from low cost – for those looking to control what they are paying – to smaller company and adventurous, for investors keen to add higher-risk options to a balanced portfolio.
The investment categories follow a similar structure to our Super 60, but the limited range of ethical options available means some categories are currently blank. We plan to add extra options over time as new ethical investments are launched or build up a good track record of performance.
ACE ethical styles explained
Each fund is given an ACE ethical style. Where a fund’s manager adopts more than one, we use the strongest that applies:
Avoids.
Funds that focus on simply excluding companies, sectors or specific business practices.
Considers.
Funds that carefully consider an often wide range of ethical and/or environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues or themes when balancing positive and negative factors.
Embraces.
Funds that focus on companies delivering positive social and/or environmental outcomes.
All funds listed are the Accumulation version of the fund, where available, where any income generated within the fund is reinvested automatically. Income versions of these funds may also be available for investors looking for income generated to be paid directly into their account. The information we provide in the ACE investments list does not constitute a personal recommendation. You should ensure that any investment decisions you make are suitable for your personal circumstances and that the ethical style of the investment reflects your personal beliefs. Past performance of the underlying constituents is not a guarantee of future performance. Remember, the value of investments and any income from them can fall as well as rise, so you could get back less than you invest.
Investment Categories
Display ii ACE 40 investments by:
ii ACE 40 - Low cost
This category is suitable for investors whose priority is keeping costs low and who are inclined to do that using a passive fund or exchange traded fund. In our ACE 40 we have also included three low cost actively managed multi-asset funds.
The investments in this category would make good building blocks for a portfolio, that will deliver performance approximately in line with the markets.
The equity investments in this section are well diversified and track the performance of recognised indices for their asset groups. They do this through physical replication of the index – holding all or a portion of all the underlying securities that make up that benchmark.
Name | Asset group | ii ACE ethical style | Selection rationale | Invest now |
| UBS ETF MSCI World SRI USD A dis GBP | Equities Global equities | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| iShares MSCI EM SRI ETF USD Acc GBP | Equities Emerging markets | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| UBS ETF MSCI Pacific SRI USD A dis GBP | Equities Asian equities | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| Vanguard SRI European Stock GBP Acc | Equities European equities | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| iShares MSCI USA SRI ETF USD Acc GBP | Equities US equities | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| Lyxor Green Bond | Fixed Income Global Bonds | Embraces | find out more | trade |
| iShares Global Clean Energy ETF USD Dist GBP | Alternatives Specialist | Embraces | find out more | trade |
| BMO Sustainable Universal MAP Cautious | Alternatives Mixed Asset | Considers | find out more | trade |
| BMO Sustainable Universal MAP Balanced | Alternatives Mixed Asset | Considers | find out more | trade |
| BMO Sustainable Universal MAP Growth | Alternatives Mixed Asset | Considers | find out more | trade |
ii ACE 40 - Core
The funds and investment trusts in this category would make good core holdings for investors who prefer active management, whereby a professional fund manager aims to beat a stock market benchmark over the long term.
They typically favour larger companies and are either well diversified or if more concentrated, will tend to be more risk-aware and to hold their underlying positions for longer than the average manager.
The fixed income funds in the category are well diversified across all fixed income types and often have a focus on preserving capital value.
ii ACE 40 - Income
The funds and investment trusts in this category make high yield a priority, meaning they suit investors who want to generate income from their investments. The equity selections are also ideally well diversified and have a moderate risk score. The fixed income selections focus on income, ideally also with an emphasis on preserving capital.
Name | Asset group | ii ACE ethical style | Selection rationale | Invest now |
| VT Gravis Clean Energy Income C GBP Acc | Alternatives Specialist | Embraces | find out more | trade |
ii ACE 40 - Smaller company
This category is intended for expert investors due to its higher risk. It includes open-ended funds and investment trusts that focus on investing in smaller companies. They give investors a chance to get in on the ground floor of younger firms that have growth potential and could deliver higher returns over time. However, investors also need to be aware that these funds may expose them to higher risk of loss. The equity selections are typically well diversified with ideally no strong style or sector bias.
Name | Asset group | ii ACE ethical style | Selection rationale | Invest now |
| Unicorn UK Ethical Income B Acc | Equities UK equity income | Avoids | find out more | trade |
| Montanaro Better World | Equities Global Equities | Embraces | find out more | trade |
ii ACE 40 - Adventurous
This category is intended for expert investors due to its higher risk. It offers investors open-ended funds and investment trusts that are distinctly different, being focussed on a specific sector or theme. The equity selections in this category are likely to offer the potential for higher returns but come with higher risks of loss. The fixed income selections are specialised bond strategies, being focussed on a specific geography, bond sector or theme. Again, they have the potential for higher returns but come with higher risks of loss.
Risk warnings
The information we provide in the ACE 40 investments list does not constitute a "personal recommendation". You should ensure that any investment decisions you make are suitable for your personal circumstances and that the ethical style of the investment reflects your personal beliefs.
Past performance of the underlying constituents is not a guarantee of future performance. Remember, the value of investments, and any income from them, can fall as well as rise so you could get back less than you invest.
Annual performance can be found on the factsheet of each fund, trust or ETF. Simply click on the asset’s name and then the performance tab.
If you are unsure about the suitability of a particular investment or think that you need a personal recommendation, you should speak to a suitably qualified financial advisor.
Any changes to the ii ACE 40 investments list and the rationale behind those decisions will be communicated through the Quarterly Investment Outlook.
Details of all recommendations issued by ii during the previous 12 month period can be found here.
ii adheres to a strict code of conduct. Members of ii staff may hold shares in companies mentioned in the ii ACE 40 investments list, which could create a conflict of interest. Any member of staff intending to complete some research about any financial instrument in which they have an interest are required to disclose such interest to ii. We will at all times consider whether such interest impairs the objectivity of the recommendation.
In addition, staff involved in the production of this ii ACE 40 list are subject to a personal account dealing restriction. This prevents them from placing a transaction in the specified instrument(s) for five working days before and after an investment is included or amended and made public within the list. This is to avoid personal interests conflicting with the interests of the recipients of this ii ACE 40 investments list.
Not yet an ii customer?
You can buy the ii ACE 40 investments in any of the accounts we offer.
£9.99 a month covers you for multiple accounts (open a SIPP by 31 January and pay no SIPP fee until August 2022. Then just £10 a month extra).