Introducing the Good Egg

With the pace of change in financial services at an all time high, it can sometimes feel a little overwhelming to try and keep up with all the change.

But something new happened in May that is quite interesting.

Good With Money unveiled the UK’s first responsible money kitemark, the Good Egg kitemark. It’s intended to help consumers by making it easier for us to find financial providers that offer a good deal for our pockets as well as for other people and our planet.

So, is it a good idea?

My view is that it feels right, and in 2017, it’s about time we look to raise the bar on the financial organisations that we do business with.

The Good Egg kitemark is a solid step towards the increasingly mainstream “people, planet, profit” mantra that is increasingly occupying the minds of business leaders. The Good Egg is not here to say that interest rates don’t matter, or that customer service is now irrelevant, but rather, to act as another stepping stone to help consumers find businesses that share (and act) in accordance with their values.

I think it’s also effective and helpful for firms to prove that they really are a bit different. Firms that embrace the values and mission behind the Good Egg should be proud to display their kitemark and to reinforce what makes them special.

Today’s financial world isn’t lacking awards, ratings and even reviews, but the Good Egg kitemark is a little different, and a little special. In order to be awarded a Good Egg kitemark, a firm has to demonstrate that are able to prove they make a positive impact, not just by improving the lives of customers, but by benefitting society and the environment, too.

The kitemark is based on a rigorous matrix of multiple criteria developed in conjunction with a firm Ethical Screening which conducts the analysis on each provider applying for the kitemark and produces a report detailing its decision. This report is presented to a small panel for review, and I’m proud to be part of this panel.

The first two firms to achieve a Good Egg kitemark are EQ Investors, a wealth manager of Positive Impact Portfolios and Abundance Investment, a renewable energy peer-to-peer platform.

So, will The Good Egg really change anything?

The truth is, The Good Egg only works if WE care enough to make it work…and that means all of us. Good With Money are giving us a good mechanism to find providers that deliver against the ethos and values that more and more of us are meant to care about.

If UK consumers care enough about this, then it will work. But it really needs your help. Ask the financial firms you do business with to get involved today, and pay a bit of special attention to those firms already proudly displaying their Good Egg. Be doing this, you’ll help to make the financial world work a little better for everybody.