by The content below is sponsored by Strive Asset Management.
It’s time to restore the voice of everyday citizens in corporate America.
Strive Asset Management co-founder and executive chairman Vivek Ramaswamy says hiring should be based on merit — not race, gender or politics — and that shareholders deserve a voice.
The largest asset management firms in America – BlackRock, State Street and Vanguard – we believe are using their clients’ capital to support political agendas rather than focusing on creating shareholder value. We believe this could potentially hinder investor returns and even economic growth.
Now investors have an alternative through the Strive 500 Exchange Traded Fund (STRV). Strive Asset Management is a new financial firm that works with corporate America in a constructive way. Strive’s message to the companies its clients own through their ETFs is simple: refocus on producing great products and services to deliver better long-term financial results for shareholders.
The company launched in 2022 with the backing of billionaire investors including Peter Thiel and Bill Ackman. It offers index funds on the New York Stock Exchange that mirror those issued by behemoths like BlackRock and State Street. But while established asset managers are pushing companies to fight climate change or champion the cause du jour, Strive is pushing companies to avoid social and political agendas unrelated to providing great products and services to customers.
“What we are doing is representing the voice of the real shareholders. Not the institutions that claim to be shareholders, but their customers – the everyday citizens of this country,” said Strive’s Vivek Ramaswamy in an interview with Fox Business.
Strive launched its first Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), DRLL, in August. Her focus is on US energy companies. The ETF has seen “rapid success,” according to Bloomberg, with more than $320 million in assets already under management. The idea is to provide a corrective to pressure against fossil fuel power generation coming from environmental, social and governance (ESG)-promoting asset managers. Strive believes that oil companies should focus on producing oil and solar panel companies should make great solar panels – and that this will deliver better long-term financial results for shareholders.
Last week, Strive announced STRV, the Strive 500 ETF. Provides exposure to 500 of the largest US companies. The goal is to provide an offset to ESG-obsessed asset managers in the boardrooms of America’s biggest corporations.
The company just released letters to the CEOs of Chevron, Apple and Disney, which can be found on strive.com.
In the letter to Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and the company’s board, Ramaswamy said he wanted to “free” companies from the constraints “imposed on Chevron by its ESG-promoting ‘shareholders’.” and Ramaswamy had dinner with Chevron’s CFO and head of investor relations.
In his letter to Disney, Ramaswamy told the company that it should focus on being the world’s leading entertainment company without taking sides on divisive political issues. Disney’s favorability rating has dropped from 77 percent to 33 percent in a single year. Ramaswamy asked how it is in Disney’s best interest – or in the best interest of its shareholders – to take political positions unrelated to its business that alienate half of its customer base.
The letter to Apple focused on the company’s decision to conduct a “racial equity audit.” Ramaswamy argued that it was not in the interests of shareholders to conduct such an audit, which the board agreed to after meeting with activist groups such as “Color of Change,” whose mission is to hold companies accountable for ” white supremacy”.
For too long, American investors have seen the asset managers they trusted with their savings abusing that trust to advance political and social agendas. Corporate America has accepted the demands of these directors because they claimed to represent shareholders.
Now investors have the option to invest in a company that will push back. Learn more about the Strive 500 Exchange Traded Fund, STRV here.
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Important information
Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, fees and expenses before investing. For a prospectus or summary prospectus with this and other information about the Fund, call 855-427-7360 or visit our website at www.strivefunds.com. Please read the prospectus or summary prospectus carefully before investing.
Investments involve risk. The main loss is possible.
Risks of STRV. Large Capitalization Companies Risk. Large-cap companies may track the returns of the overall stock market. Large-cap stocks tend to go through cycles of better – or worse – than the stock market in general. Equity Investment Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund holding equity securities, such as market fluctuations, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in share prices. The values of equity securities could generally decline or could underperform other investments. Index calculation risk. The Index relies on various sources of information to evaluate the issuer criteria included in the Index, including fundamental information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. New Fund Risk. The Fund is a newly organized investment management company with a limited operating history. As a result, prospective investors have limited track record or track record on which to base their investment decision.
DRLL Risks. Energy Sector Risk. The market value of securities in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, but not limited to, changes in energy prices, energy supply and demand, government regulations and energy conservation efforts.
ESG investing is defined as the use of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria as a set of standards for a company’s operations that socially conscious investors use to screen potential investments.
Strive’s ETFs are distributed by Quasar Distributors, LLC.
