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The insiders' edge for 40 Act industry executives!
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MutualFundWire.com
The insiders' edge for 40 Act industry executives!
an InvestmentWires' Publication |
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Friday, April 23, 1999 Funds for the Faithful *Chart of funds at article end. Recent data from independent financial data reporting service Wiesenberger for the Mennonite Mutual Aid (MMA) Praxis Mutual Funds shows that the number of religious funds is up five-fold in the six-year period from 1993-1998, increasing in number from 6 to 34. This level of growth is more than double the increase in all mutual funds, which grew from 4,011 to 10,617 in the same period. "The new data underscores the fact that more and more Americans want their money to be invested and saved in accordance with their beliefs -- social, environmental, and religious," said MMA Praxis Mutual Funds president John Liechty. "Religious mutual funds are an increasingly important alternative as the ranks of American investors continue to grow and become more and more a well-rounded picture of the U.S. adult population. The reality here is very simple; religious faith is a guiding influence in the lives of millions of Americans, most of whom do not check their most deeply held beliefs at the door when it comes to money." A religious mutual fund is loosely defined as one that makes investment decisions based on the precepts of a particular faith. Most welcome investments from all walks of life but a few, like the Lutheran Brotherhood funds, are only offered to investors of the faith. MMA Praxis believes that its funds are attractive to secular investors because of the "holistic, faith-based values to which the fund subscribes." In the past ten years, assets in religious mutual funds have grown 191 percent from $1.5 billion in 1989 to $4.5 billion today. According to Wiesenberger, the five and ten-year returns on these funds are competitive with the overall fund universe as well.
"Religious mutual funds still account for only a small fraction of all mutual funds and related assets, but it is clear that this subcategory of socially and environmentally responsible investing is growing fast," added Stephanie Kendall, a Wiesenberger analyst.
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