RiverNorth Capital Management and TrueMark Investments have launched the RiverNorth Volition America Patriot ETF in the US. (NYSE: FLDZ).
The firms write
that the innovative Fund is designed to do double-duty as a US-focused core equity portfolio and as a support to a tremendous charitable organization. The majority of advisory fees and all profits from managing the Fund will be donated to Folds of Honor, a non-profit organisation that provides the families of fallen and disabled service members with educational scholarships.
“It’s gratifying to see the investment community rally around the cause to assist military families in need,” says Lieutenant Colonel Dan Rooney, Folds of Honor Founder and CEO. “Since founding Folds of Honor in 2007, I have been deeply moved by how our partners have embraced the Folds mission to leave no family behind. We welcome the attention and committed financial support that FLDZ will bring to our families.”
“After learning about Folds of Honor and meeting Lieutenant Colonel Dan Rooney, I knew that we had to find an innovative and powerful way for RiverNorth and investors of every size to support its mission,” says Patrick Galley, CEO & CIO of RiverNorth, and Portfolio Manager to FLDZ. “As an investment firm that focuses on opportunistic investment strategies, what better opportunity is there than to support this incredible organization. At its heart, the Fund is designed to be a core equity portfolio allocation that truly invests in America and makes a beneficial impact for the families of our fallen and disabled soldiers. Additionally, our partnership with the Volition America brand seamlessly aligns with the Fund’s commitment to choose America and give investors the power of choice to invest in America.”
RiverNorth, an investment management firm with more than USD5 billion in assets under management, serves as the Fund’s Sub-Adviser with day-to-day portfolio management responsibility.
“We’re proud to offer an investment vehicle that is designed to embrace patriotic values and seek equity exposure” says Michael Loukas, CEO at TrueMark Investments, Adviser to FLDZ overseeing day-to-day operations. “FLDZ delivers real impact from the first dollar invested through its donations to Folds of Honor and so the long-term success of our shareholders is directly tied to multiplying the contributions for military families over time”.
John Sapiente, CEO of Volition America, says: “The FLDZ fund’s mission to invest in great America companies that embrace our country is at the core of the brands that we partner with. Volition America’s ability to give back to those that protect our country, have a love of patriotism, and embrace our freedom of choice is what this is all about”.
Folds of Honor is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organisation, rated 4-star by Charity Navigator and platinum by GuideStar, that provides educational scholarships to the families of military men and women who have fallen or been disabled while on active duty in the United States armed forces. Since 2007, Folds of Honor has a cumulative average ratio of 90 per cent of every dollar raised going to their scholarship program and has awarded 36,000 educational scholarships to date.
The Fund will be managed by an experienced investment team led by RiverNorth’s Galley and Joseph Bailey and including TrueMark Principal and Chief Investment Officer Jordan Waldrep.
The actively managed FLDZ seeks capital growth through a diversified portfolio of US-based, US publicly listed companies with over USD5 billion in market capitalisation that are tied to the economy of the US. A key differentiator is that companies selected for the portfolio must generate at least 90 per cent of their revenues in the United States.
FLDZ’s expense ratio is 0.70 per cent. The majority of the Fund expense ratio and all of the profit from managing the Fund will be donated to the Folds of Honor. RiverNorth will be covering all operating costs from dollar one in order to ensure these goals are met.
