Legal & General has launched three new index funds for UK and European investors.
The L&G MSCI ACWI IMI Equity Index fund, which tracks the MSCI ACWI IMI Equity index, will offer investors exposure to global equities across the market cap spectrum, covering 99% of the investable universe. According to L&G, this particular benchmark offers exposure to emerging markets and small-cap issuers, while many conventional developed market indices remain dominated by a handful of mega-cap stocks.
The L&G Global Bond Multiverse Index fund aims to track the Bloomberg Multiverse 500MM B3+ Custom index, which offers exposure to the global aggregate bond universe, as well as global high-yield assets and local currency-denominated emerging market debt.
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The Legal & General Future World Infrastructure Index fund will track Solactive L&G Climate Enhanced Infrastructure index based on its ‘environmental’ score, meaning that companies which perform well from an environmental perspective on a net total return basis will feature more heavily in the portfolio.
The Solactive L&G Climate Enhanced Infrastructure index, which was created in conjunction with L&G’s specialist index team, provides exposure to climate-aware companies providing infrastructure services such as utilities, transport and telecommunication networks based in developed countries.
Using the benchmark, the fund aims to provide an initial 50% reduction in carbon intensity.
Ben Cherrington, head of UK Wholesale, asset Management, L&G, said: “With concentration risk challenges for equity portfolios and pressures on inflation and bond yields, we have seen demand increase for more tailored exposures to both equity and credit markets.
“We have also witnessed an increasing investor interest in listed infrastructure, given the desire for better diversification and liquidity. We believe these three funds can offer clients custom index portfolios that satisfy these demands.”
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Howie Li, global head of index and ETFs, asset management, at L&G, added the team is “thrilled to be bolstering [its] index offering”.
“These new equity and bond index funds offer investors tailored exposure to equities and a broad range of fixed income asset classes in an accessible wrapper,” he said. “Infrastructure across the globe is the backbone of a strong economy and we believe that our Global Infrastructure Index fund is well positioned for offering investors exposure to a listed asset class while being able to express a conviction on ESG themes.”