WINNIPEG, MB, Feb. 2, 2024 /CNW/ – IG Wealth Management (“IG”) today announced that 10 of its investment solutions have won 2023 Fundata FundGrade® A+ Awards. The awards are presented annually to Canadian investment funds that achieve consistently high FundGrade scores throughout the calendar year.
IG Wealth Management Logo (CNW Group/IG Wealth Management)
“We’re proud to have so many of our funds recognized for their performance with these prestigious awards,” said Damon Murchison, President and CEO, IG Wealth Management. “I would like to acknowledge our investment management team and global sub-advisory partners for this outstanding achievement. These awards reflect the team’s ongoing commitment to delivering strong investment returns for our clients that help them reach their financial goals.”
IG’s investment solutions were recognized for investment excellence in the following categories:
INVESTMENT SOLUTION
CATEGORY
iProfile Emerging Markets Private Pool
Emerging Markets Equity
iProfile Fixed Income Private Pool
Global Fixed Income
iProfile Portfolio – Global Equity Balanced
Global Equity Balanced
iProfile Portfolio – Global Fixed Income Balanced
Global Fixed Income Balanced
iProfile Portfolio – Global Neutral Balanced
Global Neutral Balanced
iProfile U.S. Equity Private Pool
U.S. Equity
IG Mackenzie Global Financial Services Fund
Financial Services Equity
IG Mackenzie Global Natural Resources Fund II
Natural Resources Equity
IG Mackenzie Pacific International Fund
Asia Pacific ex-Japan Equity
IG Mackenzie U.S. Dividend Registered Fund
Global Equity Balanced
About IG Wealth Management
Founded in 1926, IG Wealth Management is a national leader in delivering personalized financial solutions to Canadians through a network of consultants located across Canada. In addition to an exclusive family of mutual funds and other investment vehicles, IG offers a wide range of other financial services. IG Wealth Management has nearly $121 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2023, and is a member of the IGM Financial Inc. (TSX: IGM) group of companies. IGM Financial is one of Canada’s leading diversified wealth and asset management companies with approximately $240 billion in total assets under management as of December 31, 2023.
About Fundata Canada Inc.
Fundata Canada Inc. has been providing data aggregation and dissemination services to the Canadian media and financial marketplace since 1987. Fundata is a major provider in the distribution of fund and stock information in Canada.
About the Fundata FundGrade A+ Rating
FundGrade A+® is used with permission from Fundata Canada Inc., all rights reserved. The annual FundGrade A+® Awards are presented by Fundata Canada Inc. to recognize the “best of the best” among Canadian investment funds. The FundGrade A+® calculation is supplemental to the monthly FundGrade ratings and is calculated at the end of each calendar year. The FundGrade rating system evaluates funds based on their risk-adjusted performance, measured by Sharpe Ratio, Sortino Ratio, and Information Ratio. The score for each ratio is calculated individually, covering all time periods from 2 to 10 years. The scores are then weighted equally in calculating a monthly FundGrade. The top 10% of funds earn an A Grade; the next 20% of funds earn a B Grade; the next 40% of funds earn a C Grade; the next 20% of funds receive a D Grade; and the lowest 10% of funds receive an E Grade. To be eligible, a fund must have received a FundGrade rating every month in the previous year. The FundGrade A+® uses a GPA-style calculation, where each monthly FundGrade from “A” to “E” receives a score from 4 to 0, respectively. A fund’s average score for the year determines its GPA. Any fund with a GPA of 3.5 or greater is awarded a FundGrade A+® Award. For more information, see www.FundGradeAwards.com. Although Fundata makes every effort to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Fundata.
IG Mackenzie Global Financial Services Fund was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Financial Services Equity category out of a total of 47 funds. Performance of Series F for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 14.39% (1 year), 13.78% (3 years), 12.67% (5 years), 11.53% (10 years) and 12.48% (since inception- July 2013).
IG Mackenzie Global Natural Resources Fund II was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Natural Resources Equity category out of a total of 67 funds. Performance of Series F for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 7.04 % (1 year), 23.27 % (3 years), 17.34 % (5 years), 7.63 % (10 years) and 7.91 % (since inception- July 2013).
IG Mackenzie Pacific International Fund was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Asia Pacific ex-Japan Equity category out of a total of 32 funds. Performance of Series F for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 4.80 % (1 year), -2.55 % (3 years), 5.48 % (5 years), 6.44 % (10 years) and 7.03 % (since inception- July 2013).
IG Mackenzie U.S. Dividend Registered Fund was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Global Equity Balanced category out of a total of 704 funds. Performance of Series F for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 17.35 % (1 year), 8.26 % (3 years), 10.48 % (5 years) and 7.93 % (since inception- January 2015).
iProfile Emerging Markets Private Pool was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Emerging Markets Equity category out of a total of 146 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 7.24 % (1 year), -5.33 % (3 years), 5.13 % (5 years), 6.64 % (10 years) and 7.49 % (since inception- January 2001).
iProfile Fixed Income Private Pool was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Global Fixed Income category out of a total of 219 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 5.39 % (1 year), -0.94 % (3 years), 2.19 % (5 years), 2.89 % (10 years) and 4.22 % (since inception- January 2001).
iProfile Portfolio – Global Equity Balanced was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Global Equity Balanced category out of a total of 704 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 11.83 % (1 year), 5.12 % (3 years) and 7.64 % (since inception- June 2020).
iProfile Portfolio – Global Fixed Income Balanced was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Global Fixed Income Balanced category out of a total of 488 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 7.92 % (1 year), 1.44 % (3 years) and 3.12 % (since inception- June 2020).
iProfile Portfolio – Global Neutral Balanced was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the Global Neutral Balanced category out of a total of 888 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 10.35 % (1 year), 3.82 % (3 years) and 5.96 % (since inception- June 2020).
iProfile U.S. Equity Private Pool was recognized for outstanding fund performance at the 2023 Fundata FundGrade A+ Awards in the U.S. Equity category out of a total of 794 funds. Performance of Series I for the period ended December 31, 2023 is as follows: 22.53 % (1 year), 10.86 % (3 years), 15.06 % (5 years), 13.63 % (10 years) and 6.92 % (since inception- January 2001).
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was down more than 200 points in late-morning trading, weighed down by losses in the technology, base metal and energy sectors, while U.S. stock markets also fell.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 239.24 points at 22,749.04.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 312.36 points at 40,443.39. The S&P 500 index was down 80.94 points at 5,422.47, while the Nasdaq composite was down 380.17 points at 16,747.49.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.80 cents US compared with 74.00 cents US on Thursday.
The October crude oil contract was down US$1.07 at US$68.08 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.26 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was down US$2.10 at US$2,541.00 an ounce and the December copper contract was down four cents at US$4.10 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index was up more than 150 points in late-morning trading, helped by strength in technology, financial and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets also pushed higher.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 171.41 points at 23,298.39.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 278.37 points at 41,369.79. The S&P 500 index was up 38.17 points at 5,630.35, while the Nasdaq composite was up 177.15 points at 17,733.18.
The Canadian dollar traded for 74.19 cents US compared with 74.23 cents US on Wednesday.
The October crude oil contract was up US$1.75 at US$76.27 per barrel and the October natural gas contract was up less than a penny at US$2.10 per mmBTU.
The December gold contract was up US$18.70 at US$2,556.50 an ounce and the December copper contract was down less than a penny at US$4.22 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.
The crypto market has recently experienced a significant downturn, mirroring broader risk asset sell-offs. Over the past week, Bitcoin’s price dropped by 24%, reaching $53,000, while Ethereum plummeted nearly a third to $2,340. Major altcoins also suffered, with Cardano down 27.7%, Solana 36.2%, Dogecoin 34.6%, XRP 23.1%, Shiba Inu 30.1%, and BNB 25.7%.
The severe downturn in the crypto market appears to be part of a broader flight to safety, triggered by disappointing economic data. A worse-than-expected unemployment report on Friday marked the beginning of a technical recession, as defined by the Sahm Rule. This rule identifies a recession when the three-month average unemployment rate rises by at least half a percentage point from its lowest point in the past year.
Friday’s figures met this threshold, signaling an abrupt economic downshift. Consequently, investors sought safer assets, leading to declines in major stock indices: the S&P 500 dropped 2%, the Nasdaq 2.5%, and the Dow 1.5%. This trend continued into Monday with further sell-offs overseas.
The crypto market’s rapid decline raises questions about its role as either a speculative asset or a hedge against inflation and recession. Despite hopes that crypto could act as a risk hedge, the recent crash suggests it remains a speculative investment.
Since the downturn, the crypto market has seen its largest three-day sell-off in nearly a year, losing over $500 billion in market value. According to CoinGlass data, this bloodbath wiped out more than $1 billion in leveraged positions within the last 24 hours, including $365 million in Bitcoin and $348 million in Ether.
Khushboo Khullar of Lightning Ventures, speaking to Bloomberg, argued that the crypto sell-off is part of a broader liquidity panic as traders rush to cover margin calls. Khullar views this as a temporary sell-off, presenting a potential buying opportunity.
Josh Gilbert, an eToro market analyst, supports Khullar’s perspective, suggesting that the expected Federal Reserve rate cuts could benefit crypto assets. “Crypto assets have sold off, but many investors will see an opportunity. We see Federal Reserve rate cuts, which are now likely to come sharper than expected, as hugely positive for crypto assets,” Gilbert told Coindesk.
Despite the recent volatility, crypto continues to make strides toward mainstream acceptance. Notably, Morgan Stanley will allow its advisors to offer Bitcoin ETFs starting Wednesday. This follows more than half a year after the introduction of the first Bitcoin ETF. The investment bank will enable over 15,000 of its financial advisors to sell BlackRock’s IBIT and Fidelity’s FBTC. This move is seen as a significant step toward the “mainstreamization” of crypto, given the lengthy regulatory and company processes in major investment banks.
The recent crypto market downturn highlights its volatility and the broader economic concerns affecting all risk assets. While some analysts see the current situation as a temporary sell-off and a buying opportunity, others caution against the speculative nature of crypto. As the market evolves, its role as a mainstream alternative asset continues to grow, marked by increasing institutional acceptance and new investment opportunities.
