FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Getting Started
Our mission here at GreenGrowth is to make your money make change, and that guides everything we do.
It was born out of the vision of founders Chris, Marc and Luke to give people the opportunity to make a positive impact with their investments, in a way that’s transparent, and in a way that’s individual to them and their consumption patterns.
While we’re ‘Climate Optimistic’ here, and society is (slowly!) moving in the right direction, its very difficult for us all to be perfect net-zero angels. GreenGrowth gives everyone the opportunity (from just £20!) to make a positive change, in an often overlooked area of their lives; their investments. We enable your investments to have a positive impact in the areas you might be having the biggest negative impact on the environment in your day-to-day life, restoring a bit of balance to an ever chaotic world!
While we’re a young company, we’re comitted to having a big impact. Our roadmap is full of exciting new products, features and ways we’re going to fulfil our vision, of enabling everyone to invest for a more sustainable world.
For tax purposes, you must be a UK Resident, and you must be over 18, to open an account with GreenGrowth.
However you do not need to be a UK National. If this is the case, during the sign up process we will ask you for identification documents relevant to your nationality.
You can download and invest through the GreenGrowth app, either on iOS or Android. Simply download the app, register and you can be invested the same day. At the moment GreenGrowth is only available via our app and not through a web browser. Visit our ‘How it works‘ page, to find out more about getting started.
Account Types
An ISA is a tax-free savings account that lets you deposit up to £20,000 during the course of each tax year. ISAs protect your money from capital gains and income tax as they are a type of ‘tax wrapper’. The ISA ‘wrapper’ GreenGrowth offers is a Stocks and Shares ISA which means you don’t pay capital gains tax on any gains made from your investments with us.
You can only open one Stocks and Shares ISA per tax year. If you have not opened or funded another Stocks and Shares ISA this tax year then you are free to open one with GreenGrowth. If you have opened another type of ISA in the same tax year, such as a Cash ISA, you can still open a Stocks and Shares ISA with us, provided you keep within the £20,000 yearly ISA allowance across all your ISA accounts.
We’re working hard on letting you to transfer your existing ISA to us, which will be coming soon so watch this space!
A GIA is a type of account that is subject to tax, but an account that someone may wish to open if they’ve reached their annual ISA allowance. However you can contribute as much as you like and there are no limits. Tax treatment depends on your individual circumstances. Please get in touch with a qualified financial advisor if you’re unsure on whether you need to pay tax on your GIA.
Investments
Addressing climate change without sacrificing investment returns is the focus of our investment strategy. We have identified five sustainable investment themes which are critical for the transition to a net zero carbon economy and can also be paired with particular activities of an individual’s lifestyle. The themes are green transport, clean water and energy, sustainable agriculture and the circular economy.
Sustainable investment funds are relatively new and the range of funds on offer is limited. We have chosen funds that have the lowest CO2 emissions, have reputable managers and offer sufficient liquidity in all market conditions. In the case of the circular economy there is only one fund available to UK investors.
Once you have made a deposit, your money will be invested by 4pm the same day, if it is on a weekday. If you have deposited on a weekend or bank holiday when the markets are not open, your money should be invested by 4pm on the next available weekday when the markets are open.
Sustainability & Environmental Data
Environmental data is collated for each company in your selected funds and in a corresponding index comprising a general universe of publicly quoted companies operating in the same sector. The data is generally sourced from the companies’ Sustainability Reports and is provided by our partner Datia, a specialist in environmental data.
Not all companies publish data but currently an average of 87% of companies in the GreenGrowth funds and selected indices provide data. In some cases the environmental data for a company is estimated by Datia by comparing it with other similar companies in the same geographical jurisdiction.
Data collected is CO2 emitted, renewable energy generated and waste produced. The environmental data for each fund is compared to the broad index comprising companies in the same sector.
For example, the environmental metrics of the L&G Clean Energy fund is compared to those of the MSCI World Energy Index. Other comparators are: MSCI Global Agriculture Producers, S&P Transportation and Ishares Global Water. The calculation of CO2e saved is the difference between the CO2e of the fund invested and the general index adjusted for the amount invested by the client.
The renewable energy is calculated from company information for companies in the L&G Clean Energy Fund. The waste saved is calculated by comparing the waste from the circular economy fund with the average of the four general indices. All data is adjusted to reflect the amount invested by the client so as to provide the environmental impact of the whole portfolio.
Additional impact metrics will be calculated in the future and will be updated here accordingly. The calculations are only as accurate as the data provided and as such the calculations shown should be taken as a guide to the portfolio’s environmental impact.
Data collected is CO2 emitted, renewable energy generated, waste and water recycled. Not all companies publish data but currently an average of 87% of companies in the GreenGrowth funds provide data. The environmental data for each fund is compared to a broad index comprising companies in the same sector.
For example, the environmental metrics of the L&G Clean Energy fund is compared to those of the MSCI World Energy Index. Other comparators are: MSCI Global Agriculture Producers, S&P Transportation, Ishares Global Water and MSCI ACWI.
The calculation of CO2e saved is the difference between the CO2e of the fund invested and the general index adjusted for the amount invested by the client. The renewable energy is calculated from company information and aggregated across all fund holdings. The data is adjusted to reflect the amount invested by the client.
Additional impact metrics will be calculated in the future and will be updated here accordingly.
We use UK Government data from the ONS (Office of National Statistics) and CPI (Consumer Price Index) to analyse personal consumption behaviour. Our carbon calculations are from the most robust academic sources including from world leader in Carbon Footprinting research, Mike Berners-Lee.
Deposits & Withdrawals
You can deposit whenever you like, without paying any fees. Inside the app, once you have created an account, selected your investments and passed our KYC (Know Your Customer) checks, you will then be asked to make a bank transfer into GreenGrowth’s secure, FSCS protected, custodian account.
You’ll be given the deposit account details. Once you’ve made the deposit, we will invest you into your chosen portfolio by 4pm on weekdays (exc. weekends and public holidays when markets are closed) and the investment will then be reflected in your account.
You can deposit whenever you like, without paying any fees. Inside the app, simply select the portfolio you wish to make a withdrawal from, and select ‘Withdraw’ from the dropdown menu.
Enter the amount you with to withdraw and it will be deposited to your nominated bank account in 5-7 working days.
Please note that to allow for market movements you can withdraw a maximum of 90% of your portfolio. Please see below about closing your portfolio.
Fees
Platform Fees
The best thing you can do for the planet, and your money is to invest for the long term.
At GreenGrowth we want to reward you for staying with us, and having a positive impact, so that’s why we’ll lower your fees over time, the longer you’re invested with us!
From the time you make your first investment, GreenGrowth will charge a 0.6% per annum Platform Fee on the balance on your account. We collect this fee on a monthly basis, so it will be the 0.6% p.a fee, divided by 12 (0.05%).
For example, if you have £1000 invested with GreenGrowth, your 0.6% p.a. platform fee will be £6 over the year, but divided by 12 means you will pay £0.50 monthly. We keep a 0.6% of your portfolio in cash from which to take this fee from.
However, as a thank you for staying with us we will drop your 0.6% p.a. platform fee to 0.4% p.a. proportionally over 5 years (dropping every quarter).
Here is a breakdown of how that will look, using the above example of an investment of £1000:
(Examples don’t account for gains or losses of your investments)
Fund Manager Fees
The managers of the underlying funds we invest you in, charge their own fees. These are paid to them directly from your investments, rather than through GreenGrowth. Depending on your portfolio allocation, this can be 0.4% p.a. to 0.9% p.a. Your exact overall free will be shown in the app before you invest. More information on Fund Manager fees can be found inside the KIID (Key Investor Information Document) for each theme.
At GreenGrowth we make our fees completely transparent so there’s no hidden surprises. We do not charge you to buy/sell, deposit/withdraw or open/close an account. There are no flat monthly subscription fees and GreenGrowth absorbs all trading costs on behalf of the client.
Managing Your Account
If you wish to close your portfolio completely you can do so by selecting close from the portfolio dropdown menu. Closing your portfolio will also take 5-7 working days for funds to reach your nominated bank account. It is still possible to have a GreenGrowth account with a zero portfolio balance and you can still access the app, but you will not be invested and you will not be charged. However if you wish to close your GreenGrowth account i.e. not be able to login and access the app, then please email hello@greengrowth.co.uk
All documentation relating to your account can be found in the Messaging Hub inside the GreenGrowth App. This includes:
- Contract notes
- Tax statements
- Valuation statements (quarterly and annual)
Security & Money Protection
Green Growth Investments Limited is an appointed representative of RiskSave Technologies Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You can find out more about GreenGrowth’s regulatory status here on the FCA’s website.
With GreenGrowth, your money is protected up to £85,000 by the FSCS scheme. If Green Growth Investments Ltd or our custodian is declared to be in default and cannot meet its obligations, you may be able to claim compensation up to £85,000. This is not expected to happen but FSCS legislation does afford you this protection. It is important to understand that FSCS protection does not cover your investments if they lose value due to market movements. As with all investments, capital is at risk. For more information about FSCS protection visit http://www.fscs.org.uk/.
We keep your information safe and secure inside the app with bank-grade AES-256 encryption and we regularly undergo 3rd party security reviews and tests. We will never sell your data and only use it in line with GDPR regulations.
You might see Seccl Technology Limited appear in some of our documentation and Terms and Conditions. Seccl are GreenGrowth’s nominated Custodian, Trading and Settlement partner. They help GreenGrowth make and settle trades as well as hold client money and assets in a separate client money account with a PRA-regulated bank.
Seccl Custody Limited is a firm authorised and regulated by the FCA, firm reference number 793200.
You can find out more about Seccl here on their website.
If you have a further question, you can always email us at hello@greengrowth.co.uk and we’ll be happy to help.
