Toronto-based First Asset Capital Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of CI Financial Corp., has announced that it is launching five new corporate-class exchange traded funds (ETFs).
The five new corporate-class ETFs that began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Tuesday include:
1. First Asset Short Term Government Bond Index Class ETF, which has been designed to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the FTSE/TMX Canada short-term government bond index, net of expenses.
2. First Asset Global Momentum Class ETF, which provides exposure to equities of companies primarily from developed markets that exhibit strong price and earnings momentum characteristics.
3. First Asset Global Momentum (CAD hedged) Class ETF, which has the same objective as First Asset Global Momentum Class ETF, but hedges foreign currency exposure to the Canadian dollar (C$).
4. First Asset Global Value Class ETF, which invests in equities of companies primarily from developed markets that exhibit strong “value” characteristics, such as low price/book and price/cash flow ratios.
5. First Asset Global Value (CAD hedged) Class, which has the same objective as First Asset Global Value Class ETF, but hedges foreign currency exposure to the C$.
“These new ETFs offer low cost, transparency, active management, diversification and a range of asset classes combined with a tax-deferred structure to deliver an investment advantage for Canadians,” says Barry Gordon, First Asset’s president and CEO, in a statement. “We will continue to introduce new ETFs within our corporate-class structure, increasing the value and benefits for our clients.”
Clients invested in First Asset’s corporate-class ETFs enjoy the advantages of tax-efficient switching among current and future ETF shares within the corporate class. There are no immediate tax consequences triggered when switching between ETFs within the corporate class and clients may also benefit from more tax-efficient distributions provided through the corporate-class structure.
The firm’s website has more information regarding its corporate-class ETFs.