Chimera Capital, Abu Dhabi asset management company and subsidiary of Chimera Investments, has unveiled a Sharia exchange-traded fund (ETF) focused on Turkey’s equity market.
The Chimera S&P Turkey Sharia ETF is a liquid, fully fungible fund that will track the performance of Turkey’s listed, Sharia-compliant securities, the company said.
The Chimera S&P Turkey Shariah ETF, the sixth sub-fund under the SCA-registered Chimera Umbrella Fund, will track the performance of the S&P Turkey Shariah Liquid 35/20 Capped Index (Bloomberg: SPTSLCAP). The index is provided by S&P Dow Jones Indices and tracks the performance of the most liquid Shariah-complaint stocks listed on the Borsa Istanbul. Syed Basar Shueb, Chairman of Chimera Capital, commented: “The launch of Chimera Capital’s ninth ETF further broadens the range and diversity of the company’s listed ETF products which give investors access to multiple stock markets, and contributes to the further deepening and expanding of the UAE capital markets.”
The new fund brings the total number of ETFs listed on stock markets in the UAE to nine. “[The new ETF] will provide investors with easy and direct access to capitalize on Turkey’s large and highly diversified economy,” said Sherif Salem, the company’s chief investment officer for public markets.
The index, provided by S&P Dow Jones Indices, tracks the performance of the most liquid Sharia-complaint stocks listed on the Borsa Istanbul. The new ETF is an Income Share Class B. Future dividends received by the fund will be distributed to investors, as available, the company said. Bourses in the GCC region are hastening efforts to diversify their product offerings to attract more foreign direct investment and boost trading activity.
Anthony Habis, Global Head Client Coverage – Asset Servicing, BNY Mellon, added: “Today’s announcement reaffirms our commitment to our collaboration with Chimera Capital, as it focuses on providing investors with multiple strategies to meet their investment preferences. As the global custodian for all of Chimera Capital’s Shariah-compliant ETFs, we continue to offer UAE investors direct access to a variety of equity markets including the U.S. and now Turkey.”
Last July, Chimera listed two US Shariah-compliant ETFs. Two other ETFs, the Chimera S&P KSA Shariah ETF and Chimera S&P Kuwait Shariah ETF, were also listed on the ADX earlier this year. It will be managed by Chimera Capital’s onshore company, Chimera Capital LLC, which is licensed by the Securities and Commodities Authority as an investment management company.