Stanbic IBTC to unveil another exchange traded fund

Nigeria’s goal of building a vibrant capital market that offers numerous investment windows is set for a boost as Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited, a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, has concluded plans to launch a new exchange traded fund (ETF), Stanbic IBTC Pension ETF 40, will mirror the Pension 40 Index (Pension Index), according to the company.

The launch will bring to two the ETFs in Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited’s portfolio. In 2014, the company, the largest non-pension asset manager in Nigeria, launched the Stanbic IBTC ETF 30, which tracks the performance of the top 30 stocks listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

The Pension Index, launched last year by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to drive market optimization, is a tracking mechanism for investors, particularly institutional investors like Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), that invest in line with guidelines set out by the National Pension Commission (PENCOM). The NSE Pension Index monitors the top 40 most capitalised and liquid companies in the market.

The Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Asset Management Limited, Mrs Bunmi Dayo-Olagunju, said the primary objective of the Stanbic IBTC Pension ETF 40 was to provide investors access to the most liquid publicly quoted companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange that are compliant with the regulatory requirements for investing pension assets in terms of taxable profits, free float, dividend, sector and individual stock weighting,” Dayo-Olagunju said.