New portfolios at Investors Group

Winnipeg-based Investors Group Inc. has introduced two new portfolio families — Investors Cornerstone Portfolios and Allegro Corporate Class Portfolios — as well as a new international equity fund mandate, Investors International Equity Fund and Class. Investors Cornerstone will provide investors with high levels of capital stability and a launching pad for dollar-cost averaging investment strategies. The Cornerstone product is designed with a mix of Investors Group funds and consists of three portfolios: Investors Cornerstone I Portfolio, Investors Cornerstone II Portfolio and Investors Cornerstone III Portfolio. Meanwhile, Allegro Corporate Class will provide a one-stop solution for investors who aim to accumulate wealth and require ongoing tax-deferred cash flow in retirement through the portfolios’ new T series. Allegro Corporate Class consists of five portfolios: Allegro Balanced Portfolio Class, Allegro Balanced Growth Portfolio Class, Allegro Growth Portfolio Class, Allegro Balanced Growth Canada Focus Portfolio Class and Allegro Growth Canada Focus Portfolio Class. Both fund portfolios will be managed by I.G. Investment Management Ltd. The Investors International Equity mandate offers investors diversification outside of North America, along with long-term capital growth; it will be managed by Dublin-based I.G. International Management Ltd. Advisor commissions for deferred sales are 0%-4.1%. The fund is also available in the no-load option. Redemption fees begin at 5.5% for the first two years and end at zero in Year 7 for the regular DSC schedule. Trailing commissions and management fees vary within the portfolios. Minimum investment for the international equity fund falls within the $15,000 minimum per household required for Investor Group funds. Otherwise, the portfolios have no minimum requirement.
New index funds at Manulife

Toronto-based Manulife Mutual Funds, a division of Elliott Page Ltd., has launched three new index funds — Manulife Canadian Equity Index Fund, Manulife U.S. Equity Index Fund and Manulife International Equity Index Fund. The investment objective of each of these index funds is to closely track the performance of the publicly traded securities in their respective markets, as measured by the S&P/TSX composite index (Canada), S&P 500 index (U.S.) and MSCI EAFE index (international). The funds are managed by MFC Global Investment Management (Canada). Management fees range up to 0.25%.

Renaissance introduces HISA

Toronto-based Renaissance Investments, offered by CIBC Asset Management Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, has added a high-interest savings account to its product lineup. The account currently offers an interest rate of 1.15%, which is calculated daily on opening balances and paid monthly to the account as reinvested distributions. The Renaissance HISA offers unlimited deposits and withdrawals and is available for registered and non-registered investments, including tax-free savings accounts. Minimum initial investment is $1,000.

Claymore amends dividend reinvestment plan

Toronto-based Claymore Investments Inc. has changed its automatic dividend reinvestment plan (AutoDRIP). The AutoDRIP, along with a pre-authorized cash contribution plan and a systematic withdrawal plan, was established on Jan. 28, 2009, for all Claymore ETFs. Claymore is removing the “automatic” enrolment feature of the AutoDRIP, so that unitholders of the ETFs who wish to have their distributions reinvested will be required to contact their investment advisor or brokerage firm directly. In future, the plan will be called the dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP). No action is required for those unitholders wishing to receive their distributions in the form of a cash payment.

New TMX web portal

TMX Group Inc. has launched a new exchange-traded funds information portal on www.TMXmoney.com, TMX Group’s financial information website. The new portal provides in-depth information on ETFs, including basic education, trading strategies and resources for investors and stakeholders. There are currently 90 exchange-traded products, comprising ETFs and exchange-traded notes, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Northern Rivers completes merger

Toronto-based Northern Rivers Capital Management Inc. has completed the merger of Northern Rivers Evolution Fund into Northern Rivers Conservative Growth Fund, as well as changing the manager of Northern Rivers Monthly Income and Capital Appreciation Fund and Northern Rivers Monthly Income and Capital Appreciation Trust Pool to Mavrix Fund Management Inc.

Compiled by Clare O’Hara (cohara@investmentexecutive.com).