In a previous article, we described ModernAdvisor's Core and Socially Responsible portfolios. This article discusses the differences between our Core and Socially Responsible portfolios in more detail.

Our Core portfolios and SRI portfolios use the same asset allocations so you are not missing out on international or emerging market exposure by choosing an SRI portfolio. The main difference between our Core and SRI portfolios is we use different ETFs in our SRI portfolios.

The ETFs in the SRI portfolios use investment screens to avoid companies that have poor environmental, social, or corporate governance (ESG) records, or have received high sustainability ratings from Morningstar. The ETFs in the SRI portfolios also won’t invest in companies that produce tobacco or military weapons at a minimum, while some go much further and avoid alcohol, gambling, nuclear power, and GMOs.

Since the ETFs in the SRI portfolio are different, the cost and yield are different from the Core portfolios. A larger portion of our SRI portfolios are made up of ETFs that are listed in the US. For this reason our SRI portfolios are more sensitive to changes in the currency exchange rate between Canadian and US dollars.

ModernAdvisor charges the same low fee for managing your account regardless of whether you choose our Socially Responsible or Core portfolio. However, some of the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in our Socially Responsible portfolios have a slightly higher fee than their core counterparts. The ETF fees for ModernAdvisor’s Socially Responsible portfolios are slightly higher than the Core ETFs.

To learn more about our Socially Responsible Portfolios, visit https://www.modernadvisor.ca/socially-responsible-investing