Trust law has hindered beneficiaries from exerting their voice in the administration of their funds. Yet, individuals do have opinions on how they want their funds to be invested and wish to direct the investments to align with their values. For a majority of individuals, this influence is mainly through their retirement fund investments. However, trust law means that the ultimate power to decide on the investment process rests in the hands of trustees to act on behalf of all beneficiaries. And trustees also further delegate most investment decisions to the investment managers. The findings of this research, as other researchers have also found, suggests that individuals who have some knowledge of SRI show a greater willingness to invest in sustainable funds. It also suggests that after choosing the type of funds that they wish to invest in, individuals place a lot of trust in their trustees to act in their best interests by investing responsibly. The research explores the various dynamics that are at play that explain individual behaviour and attitudes towards financial planning with regards to their retirement investments. The implications of my findings may have relevance in understanding what drives individuals to become active in the investment arena and may serve as a harbinger to changes in fiduciary relationships as we know them. Further research can be done in this area that will assist policy makers to consider regulation changes that could lead to the greater inclusion of final beneficiaries in the investment management process.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Swedish sustainable and responsible investment (SRI) market focusing on pension and life insurance companies. The purpose is to understand how the companies work with SRI and if there is a process in place to follow-up the investments and their possible impact. In the thesis a qualitative research method is conducted as the purpose is to understand the behaviour of the different companies relating to SRI. The empirical study consists of interviews with representatives from larger companies in the pension and life insurance space focusing on how they conduct their SRI work. The finding in this paper is that there are similarities regarding SRI strategies in place however the type of insurance being offered affects how they work. This thesis found that all companies follow-up their investments to ensure that they are sustainable. Further the process of measuring the impact of SRI is very much still in its early stage but there are initiatives taken to measure both soft and hard measurements. The future of the SRI market seems to be moving towards more transparency, both from possible legislation as well as initiatives. The other key area of focus when looking to the future of SRI in Sweden, is the sustainable development goals created by the UN.

Background: In today's society, there is more pressure to be sustainable and not least in the financial world. Several agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, have been created to steer countries towards more sustainability. When it comes to the economy, several SRI strategies have been developed to serve the same purpose. However, the problem that emerges is that investors who invest sustainably and use these strategies can lose returns and thus depart from their main goal of maximizing profits.   Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how SRI strategies are used by investors when constructing their portfolios in terms of profit maximization. The paper will thus conclude if the underlying motivation behind the choice of strategy is affected by maximizing profit.   Method and implementation: By conducting a qualitative study and interviewing several fund managers at the largest banks and fund companies in Sweden, the authors aim to answer the research question. The answers provided by the respondents are presented and analyzed in the empirical section and linked to the study's theory.   Conclusion: In this study, there is clearly shown that by investing, according to SRI, a professional investor is still able to profit maximize. The authors, therefore, see that the new way of being rational as an investor is to include SRI strategies. The relationship with being both sustainable and profit-maximizing can be seen as a significant motivating factor. The same can be said about reduced ESG risk and creating legitimacy towards customers. Furthermore, a combination of strategies can be seen as a way to create an optimal portfolio by the investors. This further proves that sustainable investing is the most rational way of investing and a way to achieve an investors main goal to profit maximize.