Gramercy Institute recognizes the launch of the world’s first marijuana ETF for its strategic excellence in financial marketing
TORONTO – April 11, 2018 – Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. (“Horizons ETFs”) is honoured to have won three marketing awards at the 15th Annual Gramercy Institute Financial Marketing Strategy Awards (“Gramercy Awards”) in New York City, for the launch campaign behind the Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF (“HMMJ”) – the world’s first marijuana ETF.
Recognized by the Gramercy Institute, a network of senior marketers from leading financial institutions worldwide, Horizons ETFs won the award for ‘Best Strategy: Domestic & Single Country’ for the ‘World’s First Marijuana ETF’ – under the ‘Business-to-Consumer’ category. It also won the ‘Best of Category’ Award among firms that submitted in this category. Horizons ETFs also won the ‘Best of Show’ Award, which went to the application that scored the highest amount of points across the Gramercy Awards’ 43 categories.
Launched last April, HMMJ is the world’s first and largest ETF in terms of assets under management (“AUM”) that offers direct exposure to North American-listed securities that are involved with marijuana production and bioengineering. HMMJ’s launch was one of the most successful ETF launches in Canadian history, peaking at approximately $863 million in AUM on January 23, 2018 before market pullbacks. Its AUM now stands at over $616 million (as at April 10, 2018).
“We are honoured to be recognized for the marketing and strategic efforts that helped make the HMMJ launch a success,” said Steve Hawkins, President and Co-CEO, Horizons ETFs. “It was a unique challenge and opportunity to launch this product in Canada, due to the speculative and somewhat controversial nature of how the Cannabis industry was perceived at the time – yet our marketing team nailed it!”
Within the ‘Best Strategy: Domestic & Single Country’ category, Horizons ETFs competed against 20 other firms, which included BMO Capital Markets, AIG and Wells Fargo Asset Management for the category win. To win ‘Best of Show’, Horizons ETFs scored the largest amount of presentation points compared to the various firms named across all categories.
“It has been exciting to shape HMMJ’s marketing journey and grow the awareness of Marijuana as a long-term thematic asset class,” said Tammy Cash, Executive Vice-President and Head of Marketing, Horizons ETFs. “It’s also very rewarding to see HMMJ inspire a whole new class of first-time ETF investors – people who may not have otherwise learned about ETFs if it wasn’t for Cannabis investing.”
HMMJ is an index (or passively managed) ETF, which seeks to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the North American Marijuana Index (the “Index”), net of expenses. The Index is designed to provide exposure to the performance of a basket of North American publicly listed life sciences companies with significant business activities in the marijuana industry. The Index selects from a current universe of companies that have operations that may include one or more of biopharmaceuticals, medical manufacturing, distribution, bio-products and other ancillary businesses related to the marijuana industry.
About Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.
Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. is an innovative financial services company and offers one of the largest suites of exchange traded funds in Canada. The Horizons ETFs product suite includes a broadly diversified range of solutions for investors of all experience levels to meet their investment objectives in a variety of market conditions. Horizons ETFs currently has approximately $10 billion of assets under management and 81 ETFs listed on major Canadian stock exchanges. Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. is a member of the Mirae Asset Global Investments Group.
About the Gramercy Institute
Based in New York, the Gramercy Institute is the world’s leading network for senior marketers from the world’s leading financial institutions. The Institute hosts over 25 conferences, summits, forums and award shows each year in leading financial hubs worldwide including Amsterdam, Boston, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Toronto. The mission of the Gramercy Institute is “to provide insight and information to senior marketers from the world’s leading financial brand while honoring and sharing the industry’s very best practices.”
For investor inquiries:
Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.
1-866-641-5739 (toll-free) or (416) 933-5745
info@horizonsetfs.com
For media inquiries:
Olivia Fazekas
Manager, Content Marketing, PR and Social
Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.
(416) 601-2502
ofazekas@horizonsetfs.com
HMMJ is not sponsored, promoted, sold or supported in any other manner by Solactive AG nor does Solactive AG offer any express or implicit guarantee or assurance either with regard to the results of using the Index and/or Index trade name or the Index Price at any time or in any other respect. The Index is calculated and published by Solactive AG. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards the Issuer, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Index to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of the financial instrument. Neither publication of the Index by Solactive AG nor the licensing of the Index or Index trade name for the purpose of use in connection with the financial instrument constitutes a recommendation by Solactive AG to invest capital in HMMJ nor does it in any way represent an assurance or opinion of Solactive AG with regard to any investment in HMMJ.
