King Charles’s estate has announced it is transferring more than £100million into ethical investment funds after significant backlash when it was revealed his estate was “collecting money from the dead”.
The announcement came following an investigation that found a significant portion of the Duchy of Lancaster’s funds came from people who died in north-west England with no will or next of kin.
An investigation by the Guardian found the funds had been used to renovate properties owned by the King – sparking backlash with the properties being rented out for a profit.
The funds were collected under the historic system of bona vacantia which means vacant goods will be passed to the Crown.
The duchy admitted that some bona vacantia revenues are financing the restoration of what it calls “public and historic properties”.
There are also claims that another portion of bona vacantia funds are being given to its charities.
On Friday, a Royal Family spokesperson said: “In line with the king’s longstanding support of ethical investing, the Duchy of Lancaster has begun the process of transferring its investment portfolio into ESG funds. This process is expected to be completed by the end of the financial year.”
There has been suggestion that the King’s estate may stop collecting bona vacantia funds or change how it is spent.
If it follows in the Duchy of Cornwall’s footsteps, the funds would be put towards ethical investments.
Ben Faulkner, of the ethical investment company EQ Investors, said benchmarking against an index could mean replicating investments in the companies involved: “Using an index as a base for a replication strategy is very common, known widely as index tracking. When doing so you will typically have more invested in the biggest companies within the index you are tracking … Shell is the largest listed company within the FTSE All-Share Index.”
The charities the bona vacantia gives revenues to are the Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund and Duchy of Lancaster Jubilee Trust.
Both charities accounts claim they aim for a £500,000 annual return from their investments.
In the last five years, the Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund has made nearly £2m in income from its investment portfolio, while the Jubilee Trust has made £2.5million.
