RBC Asset Management today announced the launch of three funds, the RBC Jantzi Balanced Fund, the RBC Jantzi Canadian Equity Fund and the RBC Jantzi Global Equity Fund.

Through its partnership with Jantzi Research Inc., RBC will be the first major Canadian bank to offer investors the option of socially responsible investing (SRI). The RBC Jantzi Funds provide new options for the growing number of investors who believe environmental, social and governance factors should be a primary consideration in making investment decisions.

“The RBC Jantzi Funds are designed for long-term investors who want to invest all or a portion of their portfolio in funds that screen investments for social, environmental and governance factors first,” said Brenda Vince, president of RBC Asset Management, in a news release. “We deliver this through the combination of Jantzi’s widely respected SRI screening skills and RBC Asset Management’s strong investment process. The RBC Jantzi Funds are where socially responsible meets financially responsible.”

Jantzi Research Inc. is an independent investment research firm formed in 1992 to monitor the environmental, social, and governance performance of global securities. Its Best-of-Sector screening model is the most recognized socially responsible investment screening process in Canada.

“Jantzi Research is proud to be partnering with RBC as it becomes the first mainstream Canadian financial institution to launch a SRI mutual fund family. RBC has long been known as a leading financial services company and corporate citizen in Canada, a position reinforced by the launch of the RBC Jantzi Funds,” said Michael Jantzi, president, Jantzi Research Inc. “The combination of Jantzi Research’s leading-edge environmental, social and governance analysis with RBC Asset Management’s proprietary multi-disciplined money management process provides new opportunities for the growing number of Canadians who wish to align their financial decisions with their environmental and social values.”

The RBC Jantzi Funds are available at all RBC branches, through RBC Dominion Securities investment advisors and a wide range of independent distributors in no-load and F-series. D-series versions of the RBC Jantzi Funds are available exclusively through RBC Direct Investing.