Financial Ethics: Investigating the Politics of Companies You Support.

When it comes to non-profits, they wear their values on their sleeve, so to speak. What you may not have considered, is that all of the other organizations you do business with–vendors, clients, financial institutions–all have their own values, causes & agendas that may not be in line with yours. Not all businesses (especially large ones) are very transparent about their leanings. How do you find out which side their bread is buttered? Here are a few resources that have done a deep dive into the data that tells you who is in line with your values in the ways that are important to you.

Mightydeposits.com analyzes public data so you can see exactly what every bank and credit union invests in (yes, EVERY). Not only can you see how your current bank stacks up, they have search tools & guides to help you find institutions that specifically align with your values.

Opensecrets.org “follows the money” so to speak, collecting data about political contributions of those associated with commercial banks, industries & prominent figures & how much of these contributions go to different political parties. If numbers and charts and graphs are your love language, this site is for you.

Progressiveshopper.com tracks the general political affiliations of companies based on public data, in an effort to help consumers make spending decisions. Additionally, they have a section devoted to “serious issues” to show where various corporations come down on specific hot topics.

Goodsuniteus.com is probably the clearest & easiest place to start if all of this information seems overwhelming. This straightforward database allows you to search by specific company or brand, & see a rating based on how their investments & holdings lean. The highest ratings are given to companies with holdings that are considered politically neutral.

How much does it matter to you that the businesses you support have ideology similar to yours? How diligent have you been in investigating the politics of the places you shop or invest your money? Let us know in the comments!

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