CI Global Asset Management Continues Modernization of Product Lineup

Rhea-AI Summary

CI Global Asset Management has announced a strategic overhaul of its product lineup aimed at simplifying offerings for clients. Key changes include the merger of 23 mutual funds, name changes for nine funds, and a reduction in investment minimums for certain classes. The CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class will see its minimum investment drop from $25,000 to $500, effective December 1, 2021. Risk ratings for CI Canadian Equity Income Class will also be adjusted from low-to-medium to medium.

Positive

• Merger of 23 mutual funds to simplify product offerings and enhance diversification.
• Reduction of minimum investment for CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class from $25,000 to $500, broadening investor access.
• Positive recommendations received from the Independent Review Committee on proposed changes.

Negative

• Risk rating for CI Canadian Equity Income Class increased from low-to-medium to medium, signaling elevated investment risk.

Changes will simplify and streamline product lineup, making it easier for clients to work with CI GAM

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

CI Global Asset Management (“CI GAM”) today announced a series of changes designed to streamline and enhance its product lineup.

They include the merger of 23 mutual funds and private pools into other mandates, name changes for nine funds, a risk rating change for CI Canadian Equity Income Class, a reduction in the investment minimums for CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class, and a portfolio management change for CI Global Health Sciences Corporate Class.

“The changes announced today are another step in modernizing our asset management business, an important strategic objective for our company,” said Kurt MacAlpine, Chief Executive Officer of CI Financial Corp., parent company of CI GAM. “Over the past 22 months, CI GAM has made exceptional progress in executing on this strategy, including introducing a broad range of new investment solutions designed to meet investors’ evolving needs and to help them reach their financial objectives in an increasingly challenging environment. Another major step was to integrate our in-house portfolio management boutiques into one global investment platform operating under the CI GAM brand.

“At the same time,” Mr. MacAlpine said, “we are simplifying and streamlining our existing product lineup, making it easier for advisors and investors to do business with us. The latest changes result from this ongoing comprehensive review of our products, a process that also incorporates feedback from financial advisors who recommend our investment funds to their clients.”

Fund mergers

CI GAM is proposing to merge the following funds to reduce duplication and to simplify its overall product lineup. The mergers will result in continuing funds with larger asset bases, allowing for increased portfolio diversification opportunities and a larger profile within the marketplace.

Terminating Fund	Continuing Fund
CI American Managers® Corporate Class*	CI U.S. Stock Selection Corporate Class*
CI Balanced Yield Private Pool Class*	CI Global Asset Allocation Private Pool
CI Canadian All Cap Equity Income Class*	CI Canadian Equity Income Class*
CI Canadian Equity Income Fund	CI Canadian All Cap Equity Income Fund
CI Canadian Equity Income Private Pool Class*	CI Canadian Equity Private Pool
CI Canadian Small/Mid Cap Managed Fund*	CI Canadian Small/Mid Cap Equity Income Fund
CI Conservative Balanced Income Class*	CI Canadian Balanced Corporate Class
CI Conservative Balanced Income Fund	CI Canadian Balanced Fund
CI Corporate Bond Class*	CI Corporate Bond Corporate Class
CI Global Balanced Yield Private Pool	CI Global Asset Allocation Private Pool
CI Global Balanced Yield Private Pool Class*	CI Global Asset Allocation Private Pool
CI Global Dividend Opportunities Class*	CI Global Dividend Opportunities Corporate Class
CI Global Equity Income Private Pool Class*	CI Global Concentrated Equity Private Pool
CI Global Equity Momentum Private Pool*	CI Global Concentrated Equity Private Pool
CI Global Value Balanced Fund	CI Global Income & Growth Fund
CI High Yield Bond Class*	CI High Yield Bond Corporate Class
CI International Equity Income Private Pool Class*	CI International Equity Growth Private Pool
CI International Equity Value Private Pool*	CI International Equity Growth Private Pool
CI Marret Short Duration High Yield Fund*	CI Enhanced Short Duration Bond Fund
CI North American Small/Mid Cap Equity Private Pool*	CI Global Smaller Companies Private Pool
CI U.S. Equity Corporate Class*	CI U.S. Equity Class
CI U.S. Equity Private Pool Class*	CI U.S. Equity Private Pool
CI U.S. Equity Currency Neutral Private Pool Class*	CI U.S. Equity Private Pool

*Securityholder approval required.

The management and administration fees payable by investors in respect of the continuing funds are the same or lower than those of the corresponding terminating funds. The costs and expenses associated with the mergers are being borne by CI GAM, not the funds.

Nineteen of the mergers will require the approval of the terminating funds’ securityholders and two of the mergers also will require the approval of the continuing funds’ securityholders. CI GAM has scheduled securityholder meetings to vote on the proposals for March 14, 2022. If approved, the mergers will take place on or after April 8, 2022. CI GAM has adopted this timeline to allow for increased flexibility in tax planning by affected investors and their advisors, given that these 19 mergers will result in a taxable disposition if the funds are held in a non-registered account.

The full details of the mergers will be provided to affected securityholders, who will receive a notification in February 2022 directing them to the CI GAM website for the information circular and other meeting materials. For mergers that do not require securityholder approval, securityholders of the terminating funds will be notified by letter in February 2022.

Name changes

The following name changes will be effective December 1, 2021, except for CI Canadian Equity Income Class, which will be renamed when the fund mergers take place on or after April 8, 2022. The changes are designed to better align the name of the funds with their mandates or, in the case of the Black Creek funds, to be consistent with CI GAM’s strategy of unifying the branding of its funds under the CI name.

Current Fund Name	New Fund Name
CI Black Creek Global Balanced Corporate Class	CI Global Balanced Corporate Class
CI Black Creek Global Balanced Fund	CI Global Balanced Fund
CI Black Creek Global Leaders Corporate Class	CI Global Leaders Corporate Class
CI Black Creek Global Leaders Fund	CI Global Leaders Fund
CI Black Creek International Equity Corporate Class	CI International Equity Corporate Class
CI Black Creek International Equity Fund	CI International Equity Fund
CI Canadian Equity Income Class	CI Canadian All Cap Equity Income Class
CI Global Investment Grade Credit Private Pool	CI Investment Grade Bond Private Pool
CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class	CI Global Investment Grade Class

Investment minimum reductions

The minimum initial investment for CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class (to be renamed CI Global Investment Grade Class) will be reduced to $500 from $25,000, effective December 1, 2021. The change applies to Series A, F and P shares and will make the fund, the winner of two 2021 Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards, accessible to a wider range of income-seeking investors.

Risk rating change

The risk rating for CI Canadian Equity Income Class will be changed to medium from low-to-medium, effective today. The risk rating change is based on the risk classification methodology mandated by the Canadian Securities Administrators to determine the risk level of mutual funds. CI GAM reviews the risk rating for each of the funds it manages at least on an annual basis, as well as when a fund undergoes a material change. This change is the result of an annual review and is not the result of any change to the investment objectives, strategies or management of the fund.

Portfolio management change

CI GAM has been named portfolio advisor to CI Global Health Sciences Corporate Class, effective on or about March 31, 2022. CI GAM believes the fund will benefit from the deep investment capabilities of the CI GAM team, including its expertise in global industry sectors. Jeff Elliott, a specialist in the global health-care sector and whose credentials include a PhD in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, an MBA and the CFA designation, will be Lead Portfolio Manager. CI GAM is replacing Altrinsic Global Advisors, LLC, the current sub-advisor to the fund.

The Independent Review Committee of the funds has reviewed the proposed mergers and portfolio management change with respect to potential conflict of interest matters and provided its positive recommendation or approval, as applicable, having determined that the changes achieve a fair and reasonable result for each of the funds.

About CI Global Asset Management

CI Global Asset Management is one of Canada’s largest investment management companies. It offers a wide range of investment products and services and is on the Web at www.ci.com. CI Global Asset Management is a subsidiary of CI Financial Corp. (TSX: CIX, NYSE: CIXX), an independent company offering global asset management and wealth management advisory services with approximately $331.8 billion in assets as of October 31, 2021.

Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund investments. Please read the prospectus before investing. The indicated rates of return are the historical annual compounded total returns net of fees and expenses payable by the fund (except for figures of one year or less, which are simple total returns) including changes in security value and reinvestment of all dividends/distributions and do not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any securityholder that would have reduced returns. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently, and past performance may not be repeated.

This communication is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase mutual funds managed by CI Global Asset Management and is not, and should not be construed as, investment, tax, legal or accounting advice, and should not be relied upon in that regard. Every effort has been made to ensure that the material contained in this document is accurate at the time of publication. Individuals should seek the advice of professionals, as appropriate, regarding any particular investment. Investors should consult their professional advisors prior to implementing any changes to their investment strategies. These investments may not be suitable to the circumstances of an investor.

The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards, granted annually, highlight funds and fund companies that have excelled in delivering consistently strong risk-adjusted performance relative to their peers. The Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards are based on the Lipper Leader for Consistent Return rating, which is a risk-adjusted performance measure calculated over 36, 60 and 120 months. The fund with the highest Lipper Leader for Consistent Return (Effective Return) value in each eligible classification wins the Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award. For more information, see lipperfundawards.com. Although Refinitiv Lipper makes reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the data contained herein, the accuracy is not guaranteed by Refinitiv Lipper. CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class (Series P) was awarded the 2021 Refinitiv Lipper Fund Awards in the global fixed-income category for 3 and 5 years ending July 31, 2021, out of a classification total of 53 funds (3 years) and 42 funds (5 years). Performance for the Fund for the period ended October 31, 2021 was 3.7 (1 year), 8.2% (3 years), 5.4% (5 years) and 5.3% (since inception; 2016-07-04).

CI Global Asset Management is a registered business name of CI Investments Inc. ©CI Investments Inc. 2021. All rights reserved.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211129005176/en/

Murray Oxby

Vice-President, Corporate Communications

416-681-3254

moxby@ci.com

Source: CI Global Asset Management

FAQ

What is the recent announcement by CI Global Asset Management regarding fund mergers?

CI Global Asset Management announced the merger of 23 mutual funds to streamline its offerings, aiming for improved client accessibility and reduced duplication.

When will the name changes for some funds take effect?

The name changes for nine funds will be effective on December 1, 2021, with some changes contingent upon fund mergers occurring on or after April 8, 2022.

How has CI Global Asset Management adjusted investment minimums?

The minimum initial investment for CI Global Investment Grade Private Pool Class has been reduced from $25,000 to $500, effective December 1, 2021.

What are the implications of the risk rating change for CI Canadian Equity Income Class?

The risk rating change from low-to-medium to medium indicates a higher investment risk for the CI Canadian Equity Income Class as of the recent announcement.

What steps are being taken to modernize CI Global Asset Management?

CI Global Asset Management is focusing on simplifying its product lineup, integrating portfolio management boutiques, and introducing new investment solutions to meet evolving investor needs.