Evolve North American Gender Diversity Index ETF (TSX: HERS) And Evolve Cyber Security Index ETF (TSX: CYBR) Begin Trading On The TSX

Evolve Funds Group Inc. ("Evolve Funds") is pleased to announce the launch of the following first-of-its-kind ETFs in Canada (“Evolve ETFs”):

Canada’s first Gender Diversity ETF

The Evolve North American Gender Diversity Index ETF ("HERS"); and

Canada’s first Cyber Security ETF

The Evolve Cyber Security Index ETF (“CYBR”)

The Evolve ETFs have closed their initial offering of hedged and unhedged units and will begin trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") today under the following ticker symbols:

These new Evolve ETFs are designed to give Canadian investors access to investment themes that will help them gain exposure to new emerging trends and industries.

"We are very excited to be launching Canada’s first Gender Diversity ETF and Cyber Security ETF. These ETFs surround topics that intersect in our daily lives," said Raj Lala, President and CEO of Evolve Funds.  “As Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing becomes more important to investors, our Gender Diversity ETF is a clear fit and arguably our Cyber Security ETF as well, since it results in good governance.”

Evolve North American Gender Diversity Index ETF

HERS is the first listed ETF in Canada that is focused solely on gender diversity and workplace inclusion.  HERS offers investors access to North American equity securities of companies that have demonstrated commitment to gender diversity as part of their corporate social responsibility strategy.

"Many large companies are making gender diversity a priority for their businesses as numerous evidence suggests that greater gender diversity results in better corporate performance – simply put the investment thesis is strong,” said Raj Lala. “Gender Diversity is becoming a prominent topic with Canadians – and this ETF provides an opportunity to support it through investment.”

“We are very pleased to be working with Equileap, whose comprehensive gender ranking methodology make them an important component for this ETF,” continued Raj Lala. “They go beyond just simply looking at the percentage of women on boards or in management, but also women in the workforce and existing HR policies. We are also proud to support gender diversity as an organization and currently intend to use 10% of the management fee we receive from HERS towards donations and sponsorships to charities and organizations that support women’s causes.”

HERS is an index (or passively managed) ETF, which seeks to replicate, to the extent reasonably possible and before fees and expenses, the performance of the Solactive Equileap North American Gender Equality Index Canadian Dollar Hedged, or any successor thereto.

Diana van Maasdijk, CEO of Equileap, commented: “We strongly believe that promoting transparency by ranking companies globally based on a fact-based, thorough methodology will encourage companies to demonstrate an even stronger commitment on gender equality.” She added: “We are proud to be part of Canada’s first Gender Diversity ETF– Canada is a country that has been particularly active in promoting gender equality in the workplace, both in the public and private sectors over the past few years.” 

Evolve Cyber Security Index ETF

CYBR is the first ETF in Canada that invests primarily in equity securities of global companies that are involved in the cyber security industry through hardware and software development.

“Many corporate CEOs and Government officials mention that cyber risk is at the top of the list of items that keep them up at night,” stated Raj Lala. “Cybercrime costs the global economy over $3 trillion annually and is expected to rise. As cybercrime is constantly increasing and changing, the demand for cybersecurity services will most definitely increase as well – and that’s why we’re launching this first in Canada ETF.”

CYBR is an index (or passively managed) ETF that seeks to replicate, to the extent reasonably possible and before fees and expenses, the performance of the Solactive Global Cyber Security Index Canadian Dollar Hedged, or any successor thereto.