Horizons ETFs enters RI market with new sustainable fund

Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) has launched its first fund with a responsible investment theme: the Horizons Global Sustainability Leaders Index ETF.

The fund, which began trading on Thursday under the ticker symbol ETHI, seeks to replicate the performance of the Nasdaq Future Global Sustainability Leaders Index. In a release, the firm says the fund has a “low-carbon-footprint and SRI-screened passive global investment portfolio,” which offers access to 100 of the world’s largest companies that are committed to “environmentally sustainable business practices.”

Companies are chosen from developed markets and must meet market capitalization and liquidity requirements. Further, they must have a carbon impact at least 60% lower than their industry’s average or be active in reducing the carbon footprint of other industries, and they can’t be engaged in activities inconsistent with SRI principles, such as fossil-fuel production and animal cruelty.

In the release, Horizons ETFs says it recently became a member of the Responsible Investment Association. Earlier this month, the RIA released its 2018 trends report, which found RI assets in Canada totalled $2.13 trillion as of Dec. 31, 2017.

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