Prince Harry and Meghan are getting into the investment business. They are joining Ethic, a fintech asset manager in the fast-growing environmental, social and governance space, as “impact partners” and investors. Ethic has $1.3 billion under management and creates separately managed accounts to invest in social responsibility themes.
Harry and Meghan can make E.S.G. investing part of pop culture in a way that, say, BlackRock’s Larry Fink can’t. “From the world I come from, you don’t talk about investing, right?” Meghan told DealBook in a joint interview with Harry. “You don’t have the luxury to invest. That sounds so fancy.”
“My husband has been saying for years, ‘Gosh, don’t you wish there was a place where if your values were aligned like this, you could put your money to that same sort of thing?’” Meghan said. They were introduced to Ethic by friends, she said.
Harry and Meghan said they hoped that their involvement would help democratize investing, making people — especially younger people — more deliberate in their choices and conscious of investing in sustainable companies. “You already have the younger generation voting with their dollars and their pounds, you know, all over the world when it comes to brands they select and choose from,” Harry said, suggesting it was a natural extension to do the same with investments.
Ethic was founded in 2015 and has tripled assets under management in the past year, Doug Scott, a founder of the company, told DealBook. Ethic runs screens on companies and sectors based on social responsibility criteria, including racial justice, climate and labor issues. Its user interface has more in common with the likes of Robinhood than traditional financial sites, and it has developed a new platform, “Sustainability for Everyone,” which scores a person’s portfolio along different dimensions.
The move is the couple’s latest corporate partnership since relocating to the U.S. Harry and Meghan moved to Los Angeles last year and later gave up official royal family duties. Seeking financial independence, they have signed production deals with Netflix and Spotify. Harry also recently produced a documentary series about mental health for Apple TV+ in connection with Oprah Winfrey and is writing a memoir.
Some Important Dates
March 7, 2021: A Secret Wedding and a Gender Reveal
When the world witnessed Meghan walk down the aisle to wed Prince Harry in 2018, we thought that was the first time the couple said "I do." However, the couple secretly wed three days prior to the royal nuptials at Windsor Castle! Meghan revealed the shocking news during her highly-anticipated tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey on March 7, 2021. Turns out, they officially became husband and wife in their backyard during a ceremony officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
During the same interview with Oprah, the royal couple also shared some very special news: the gender of their second baby. After announcing their pregnancy on Feb. 14, the couple is currently expecting a baby girl! With their nearly two-year-old son Archie and a daughter on the way the expecting parents also said "they are done" with having children.
It’s a girl! On June 6, Meghan and Harry announced the birth of their second child, Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.
"It is with great joy that Prince Harry and Meghan, welcome their daughter, Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, to the world," the couple shared on their Archewell Foundation website. "Lili was born on Friday, June 4 at 11:40 a.m. in the trusted care of the doctors and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital." The youngest member of the royal family weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces, and the statement confirmed that both Meghan and Lili are "healthy and well, and settling in at home."
The baby’s name is a sweet tribute to two significant people, according to the official announcement. "Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet." Lili's middle name, Diana, of course, is a nod to Prince Harry's late mother, Princess Diana.
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