The Unsustainable Sustainable Investing Boom.

As financial institutions rush to profit from the boom in sustainable investing, they risk overselling its ethical and commercial benefits. It would be a shame if a movement with genuine potential to change the world was stopped in its tracks by old-fashioned misselling.

Whether in airports, hotels, or glossy magazines, advertisements for sustainability-themed financial products are everywhere these days, bombarding investors with some variant of the message, “Make money while doing good.” And who could object to that?

But a movement that aims to pioneer a more high-minded, socially beneficial form of financial capitalism is starting to exhibit some familiar flaws: rapid growth driven by slick marketing, lack of standards and regulation, and confusing products that investors often misunderstand.