Article View

First Christian ETFs Launched

FaithShares Advisors, LLC.
Fri, Dec. 11 2009 08:24 AM MST

OKLAHOMA CITY, Dec. 9 /PRNewswire/—FaithShares Trust today
launched the first three exchange-traded funds (ETFs) addressing the
investment needs of Christian investors. The funds are managed by
FaithShares Advisors, LLC.

The
securities held in each of the funds, FaithShares Catholic Values Fund
(FCV), FaithShares Methodist Values Fund (FMV) and FaithShares
Christian Values Fund (FOC), are tailored to each denomination’s
teachings and recommendations for investing. FaithShares Advisors, LLC
worked with the FTSE Group, the leading global index provider, and KLD
Research & Analytics, a leading provider of environmental, social
and governance (ESG) research and indexes, to create a series of custom
indexes on which the funds are based.

“We
created these funds to meet the needs of investors who want to
participate in the potential of the stock market, yet be good stewards
of their money,” said Thompson S. Phillips Jr., President of
FaithShares. “As an ETF, each of our funds will include 100 stocks of
large, well-known companies but specifically exclude those considered
to be ‘objectionable industries’ by a specific denomination. Our funds
are the first Christian ETFs in the market.”

The
FaithShares Funds allow individuals and groups to invest in accordance
with the tenets of their faith in one security, while still getting
exposure to the broad market. The portfolios will be screened to
exclude companies that benefit from gambling, alcohol, tobacco,
pornography, weaponry and other activities that are included in each
denomination’s published criteria.

“We
did a great deal of research on the covenants of the various
denominations in designing these funds,” said Garrett Stevens, CEO and
portfolio manager. “The Christian Values Fund is the most conservative
and we feel it answers the needs of non-denominational church members
and other denominations not specifically represented by our other ETFs.”

On
December 15, FaithShares anticipates launching two additional funds
specifically aligned with the Baptist (FaithShares Baptist Values Fund
- FXB) and Lutheran (FaithShares Lutheran Values Fund - FKL) faiths.

Annually,
FaithShares Advisors, the management company of FaithShares, will give
a minimum of ten percent of its net income to a ministry associated
with the respective denominations.

The
funds will be rebalanced annually and offer complete transparency about
their holdings. ETFs offer an inexpensive way to invest in the market.

From
2000 to 2006, assets in other faith-based investments have grown
seven-fold underscoring the public’s interest in investing according to
their beliefs.

Investors can purchase the funds through their investment advisor or discount broker.

About FaithShares Advisors

Mr.
Phillips and Mr. Stevens together bring over 40 years of investment
experience to this endeavor. Mr. Phillips also owns a broker-dealer,
T.S. Phillips Investments, Inc., which is comprised of 17 investment
consultants and oversees approximately $1 billion in client assets, as
well as an RIA, Phillips Capital Advisors. Mr. Phillips and Mr. Stevens
have worked closely together for 10 years and in that time have
experienced firsthand the frustrations encountered by Christian
organizations as they attempt to balance their desire for long-term
investment growth with their desire to avoid objectionable industries.
They currently provide investment performance analysis services for
over $3 billion in investor assets. The daily operations of FaithShares
will be conducted primarily by Mr. Stevens, while Mr. Phillips will
take on the role of corporate spokesperson.

About FTSE Group

FTSE
Group (“FTSE”) is a world-leader in the creation and management of
indexes. With offices in Boston, Beijing, London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong,
Madrid, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Sydney, Shanghai and Tokyo,
FTSE works with investors in 77 countries globally. It calculates and
manages a comprehensive range of equity, fixed income, real estate and
investment strategy indices, on both a standard and custom basis. The
company has collaborative arrangements with a number of stock
exchanges, trade bodies and asset class specialists around the world.

FTSE
indexes are used extensively by investors world-wide for investment
analysis, performance measurement, asset allocation and portfolio
hedging and for creating a wide range of index tracking funds.

About KLD Indexes

KLD
Indexes is a business unit of KLD Research & Analytics, Inc., a
wholly-owned subsidiary of RiskMetrics Group, Inc. KLD is a leading
provider of environmental, social and governance (ESG) research for
institutional investors, headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

KLD
Indexes develops and licenses benchmark, strategy and custom indexes
that investment managers use to integrate ESG criteria into their
investment decisions. KLD Indexes are designed to be transparent,
representative and investable. Products based on KLD Indexes include
Mutual Funds, ETFs, Separately Managed Accounts, Unit Investment
Trusts, Variable Annuities, and Structured Products. For more
information, go to www.kld.com/indexes.

Carefully
consider the Funds’ investment objectives, risk factors, charges, and
expenses before investing. This and additional information can be found
in the Funds’ prospectus, which may be obtained by calling
1-877-FAITH55 (1.877.324.8455), or by visiting www.faithshares.com.
Read the prospectus carefully before investing.

This
information is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to
buy shares of any Fund to any person in any jurisdiction in which an
offer, solicitation, purchase or sale would be unlawful under the
securities laws of such jurisdiction.

Investing
involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. In addition to
the normal risks associated with investing, narrowly focused
investments typically exhibit higher volatility.

Shares
are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually
redeemed from the Fund. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns.

FaithShares Funds are distributed by SEI, which is not affiliated with FaithShares Advisors, LLC or any of its affiliates.

SOURCE FaithShares Advisors, LLC.

Link to Source