(Bloomberg) -- Two prominent Jewish groups are starting what they say is the first-ever exchange-traded fund that will tailor investments in S&P 500 Index companies depending on whether they’re friendly to Jewish causes.
The Anti-Defamation League, an advocacy group that seeks to combat antisemitism, and Jewish investor group JLens, are starting the JLens 500 Jewish Advocacy US exchange-traded fund with commitments of about $100 million, according to a statement Thursday. Its ticker will be “TOV,” which means “good” in Hebrew.
The groups will largely use the ETF as a vehicle to promote Jewish-friendly causes through shareholder advocacy and to counter rising pressure on companies to boycott Israel, ADL Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Greenblatt said in an interview.
JLens will measure companies according to “Jewish values” scorecards and will exclude firms whose activities don’t align with them, Greenblatt said. That includes those that are yielding to the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement, which calls for broad economic and cultural boycotts of Israel. Only four companies will be excluded from the fund at launch.
“We’re putting our money where our mouth is,” Greenblatt said. “It’s going to give us the opportunity to harness the collective power of shareholders in a way that simply hasn’t happened before.”
In the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 civilians, there’s been a spike in anti-Jewish incidents, according to Greenblatt. That attack spurred Israel to strike Gaza, killing tens of thousands of people and sparking a humanitarian crisis. The number of reported antisemitic incidents in the US hit a record of 10,000 in the year after the attack on Israel, according to the ADL, which said those included verbal or written harassment, vandalism or physical assault.
Assets in US faith-based ETFs and mutual funds exceeded $100 billion for the first time last year as more investors opted to invest in alignment with their religious values, according to Brightlight, which advises investors on faith-based investing. That’s up from $72 billion in 2020.
JLens will exclude General Mills Inc. from the ETF, according to JLens managing director Ari Hoffnung. The food company in 2022 said it had sold its stake in a joint venture in Israel that makes dough products. Pro-Palestinian groups said they had spent years pressuring General Mills to sell its investment. General Mills didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
The ETF will also exclude tobacco companies Altria Group Inc. and Philip Morris International Inc. as well as oil sands operator ConocoPhillips because they don’t align with Jewish values, Hoffnung said.
Philip Morris and ConocoPhillips didn’t respond to requests seeking comment. Altria declined to comment.
The ETF counts among its investors the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, Atlanta Jewish Foundation and Jewish Community Partners in Memphis, according to the statement.
Other religious ETFs include those run by Inspire Investing, which operates a fund whose ticker is WWJD. The Catholic fraternal organization Knights of Columbus also runs religious ETFs.
A record $1.1 trillion flowed into US ETFs last year, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. Since the start of 2023, about 240 funds attracted $100 million or more in their first year, compared with 148 in the prior two years, the researchers said.
--With assistance from Deena Shanker and Fiona Rutherford.
(Updates with companies excluded from ETF from eighth paragraph)
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