An empirical investigation into the investor perception towards environmentally sustainable mutual funds

Abstract

The financial industry is largely affected by the revolutionary changes taking place in the world. ESG is one of the key elements in these changes. Significant changes in how firms function, investments are made, and risks are evaluated define this changing environment. As investors recognize how critical sustainability is to a company's long-term survival, they are progressively assessing companies not only based on their financial growth but also on their environmental impact. The independent variables are the availability of information regarding sustainable funds, awareness of environmental sustainability, and social self-efficacy. This research attempts to study the factors that influence consumers’ intentions to invest in sustainable mutual funds. The dependent variable is intention to invest in socially responsible funds. The sample consists of 652 people from South India who have invested in green mutual funds. The sampling design adopted is random sampling. The data collection approach used for primary data collection is an online survey. Standard research instruments were used to create the survey questionnaire. The data were analyzed using AMOS. The results show that awareness of environmental sustainability and social self-efficacy have a significant impact in persuading consumers’ intention to invest in socially responsible funds. However, information availability does not affect consumers’ intention to invest in sustainable funds.