Inspire Investing's Founding Biblical ESG ETFs Celebrate 5 Years of Trading

BOISE METRO, Idaho , March 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Inspire Investing, a leading biblically responsible ESG (environmental, social, governance)¹ investing firm, celebrated the 5-year anniversary of their two-founding exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Sunday, February 27, 2022; the Inspire Global Hope ETF (NYSE: BLES) and the Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF (NYSE: ISMD). 

"Five years ago, there simply were no biblically responsible ETFs, and so we created BLES and ISMD out of sheer necessity," says Robert Netzly, CEO of Inspire Investing. "However, I do not think any of us considered that these would start us down the path that would lead to us becoming the largest provider of biblically responsible ETFs as we are today. Thankfully, Christian investors have many more options to invest according to their convictions, and we are proud to be leading the charge in that effort and celebrate with full hearts the anniversary of the ETFs that started it all."

About The Inspire Global Hope ETF (NYSE: BLES)

The Inspire Global Hope ETF is a biblically responsible ESG ETF that invests on a global scale, searching out inspiring, biblically aligned large companies ($13B+ market cap) from both the U.S. and around the world, using the innovative Inspire Impact Score methodology to identify companies that are making a positive impact on the world and avoiding those acting at crosscurrents to biblical values.

BLES is equally weighted, rebalanced quarterly, and targets a geographic composition of 50% United States, 40% developed international, and 10% emerging markets. The ETF seeks to deliver quality performance characteristics and to replicate investment results that generally correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Inspire Global Hope Index.

Since its inception on February 27, 2017, BLES delivered annualized returns of 10.97% on the NAV (net asset value) and 10.87% on the market price (as of 2/27/2022). The one-year return for BLES was 23.42% on the NAV, with a market price return of 24.42% as of the end of the previous quarter (12/31/2021). BLES trades on the New York Stock Exchange and has total net assets of $140M as of February 28th, 2022.

Inspire Global Hope ETF (NYSE: BLES)		Performance As of Most Recent Quarter End (12/31/2021)
(Returns greater than 1 year are annualized. Data from ETF Logic.)	5 Year Anniversary (2/27/2017 - 2/28/2022)	3M	1YR	3YR	Since Inception (2/27/2017 - 12/31/2021)
Inspire Global Hope ETF - NAV2	10.97%	6.97%	23.42%	21.21%	13.00%
Inspire Global Hope ETF - Market Price3	10.87%	7.47%	24.42%	21.47%	13.08%

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. The performance data quoted here represents past performance. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance data quoted above. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. For performance data current to the most recent month-end, please visit www.inspireetf.com. Total annual operating expenses is 0.61% for BLES. The Fund's adviser has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund so that the total annual fund operating expenses will not exceed 0.52% of average daily net assets until at least March 31, 2022.

²Inspire Funds are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemed from the fund. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns. ‍³Market Price returns are based upon the official closing price on the listing exchange (NYSE ARCA) at 4:00 p.m. ET when NAV is normally determined for most Inspire Funds and do not represent the returns you would receive if you traded shares at other times.

‍About the Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF (NYSE: ISMD)

The Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF is a biblically responsible ESG ETF that invests in inspiring, biblically aligned small-cap and mid-cap companies ($850M - $12.99B market cap) in the U.S., as determined by the Inspire Impact Score methodology.

ISMD is equally weighted, rebalanced quarterly, and targets a composition of 50% small-cap and 50% mid-cap companies covering a diverse array of sectors in the United States. The ETF seeks to replicate investment results that generally correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact Index.

Since its inception on February 27, 2017, ISMD delivered annualized returns of 9.32% on the NAV (net asset value) 9.31% on the market price (as of 2/27/2022). The one-year return for ISMD was 28.39% on the NAV and 29.40% on the market price return, as of the end of the previous quarter (12/31/2021). ISMD trades on the New York Stock Exchange and has total net assets of $110M as of February 28th, 2022.

Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF (NYSE: ISMD)		Performance As of Most Recent Quarter End (12/31/2021)
(Returns greater than 1 year are annualized. Data from ETF Logic.)	5 Year Anniversary (2/27/2017 - 2/28/2022)	3M	1YR	3YR	Since Inception (2/27/2017 - 13/31/2021)
Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF - NAV2	9.32%	7.99%	28.39%	19.72%	10.98%
Inspire Small/Mid Cap Impact ETF - Market Price3	9.31%	8.32%	29.40%	20.10%	11.11%

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. The performance data quoted here represents past performance. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance data quoted above. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so that shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. For performance data current to the most recent month-end, please visit www.inspireetf.com. Total annual operating expenses is 0.60% for ISMD. The Fund's adviser has contractually agreed to reduce its fees and/or absorb expenses of the Fund, until at least March 31, 2022, to ensure that total annual fund operating expenses after fee waiver and/or reimbursement will not exceed 0.60% of the Fund subject to possible recoupment from the Fund.

²Inspire Funds are bought and sold at market price (not NAV) and are not individually redeemed from the fund. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns. ‍³Market Price returns are based upon the official closing price on the listing exchange (NYSE ARCA) at 4:00 p.m. ET when NAV is normally determined for most Inspire Funds and do not represent the returns you would receive if you traded shares at other times.

About Inspire Investing

Inspire is a leading provider of biblically responsible, faith-based ESG investments managing over $1.9 billion in assets under management (as of 12/31/2021), and creator of the globally recognized Inspire Impact Score™ which is used by investors around the world to measure the biblical alignment of their investments according to biblically responsible investing (BRI) principles.

Inspire ranked #3 in the "Top 50 fastest growing RIA firms" by FA Magazine two years in a row (2020 & 2021 report) and recognized in The Financial Times "Americas' Fastest Growing Companies 2021".

Investment advisory services offered through Inspire Investing, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisor with the SEC.

¹Environmental criteria considers how a company performs as a steward of nature. Social criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates. Governance deals with a company's leadership, executive pay, audits, internal controls, and shareholder rights.

Important Risk Information: 

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. To obtain a prospectus which contains this and other information, call 877.658.9473, or visit www.inspireetf.com. Read it carefully. The Inspire ETFs are distributed by Foreside Financial Services LLC.

Inspire, the adviser provides the index for the Inspire Funds to track. The indexes use software that analyzes publicly available data relating to the primary business activities, products and services, philanthropy, legal activities, policies, and practices when assigning Inspire Impact Scores to a company. The securities with the highest Inspire Impact Scores are included in the Indexes and are equally weighted. As the Fund may not fully replicate the Index, it is subject to the risk that investment management strategy may not produce the intended results.

Past performance is no guarantee that the Funds will achieve their objective, generate positive returns, or avoid losses.

Securities in the Index or in the Fund's portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general securities markets or other asset classes. The Fund may focus its investments on securities of a particular industry to the extent the Index does. This may cause the Fund's net asset value to fluctuate more than that of a fund that does not focus on a particular industry. Fluctuations in the value of equity securities held by the Fund will cause the net asset value ("NAV") of the Fund to fluctuate. Investments in foreign securities could subject the Fund to greater risks including currency fluctuation, economic conditions, and different governmental and accounting standards.

The Fund is not actively managed, and the Adviser will not sell shares of an equity security due to current or projected underperformance of a security, industry, or sector unless that security is removed from the Index or the selling of shares of that security is otherwise required upon a rebalancing of the Index as addressed in the Index methodology. Tracking error may occur because of imperfect correlation between the Fund's holdings of portfolio securities and those in the Index. The Fund's use of a representative sampling approach, if used, could result in it holding a smaller number of securities than are in the Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.

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SOURCE Inspire Investing