Fidelity Investments^® announced the launch of two new thematic exchange-traded funds (ETFs) — Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments ETF (FDIG) and Fidelity Metaverse ETF (FMET) – and five new fixed income sustainable funds and ETFs – Fidelity Sustainable Core Plus Bond Fund (FIAEX), Fidelity Sustainable Core Plus Bond ETF (FSBD), Fidelity Sustainable Low Duration Bond Fund (FAPGX), Fidelity Sustainable Low Duration Bond ETF (FSLD), and Fidelity Sustainable Intermediate Municipal Income Fund (FSIKX). These seven innovative new funds will be available on or about April 21, 2022, for individual investors and financial advisors to purchase commission-free through Fidelity’s online brokerage platforms.

The two new thematic ETFs expand Fidelity’s lineup into the crypto and metaverse industries. Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments ETF, which will not offer direct exposure to cryptocurrency, delivers the opportunity to invest in companies that support the broader digital assets ecosystem, including those involved in crypto mining and trading, blockchain technology, and digital payments processing.

Fidelity Metaverse ETF can help investors invest in the evolution and future of the internet by providing access to companies that develop, manufacture, distribute, or sell products or services related to establishing and enabling the metaverse, such as computing hardware and components, digital infrastructure, design and engineering software, gaming technology and software, web development and content services, and smart phone and wearable technology​. Fidelity also released a new Viewpoints article about the metaverse: Enter the metaverse.

“Leveraging Fidelity’s decades of investment expertise, we are focused on growing our broad product lineup with innovative strategies that offer choice, value and new opportunities to investors,” said Greg Friedman, Fidelity’s Head of ETF Management and Strategy. “We continue to see demand, particularly from young investors, for access to the rapidly growing industries in the digital ecosystem, and these two thematic ETFs offer investors exposure in a familiar investment vehicle.”

These two new passively managed ETFs will have expense ratios of 0.39%, the lowest available for ETFs of their kind. These are self-indexed ETFs, utilizing Fidelity’s proprietary indices, constructed by Fidelity’s quantitative investing team, to identify equity securities that offer exposure to these rapidly growing industries. With this launch, Fidelity will offer 51 ETFs with more than $33 billion in assets under management.

Fidelity’s five new sustainable fixed income mutual funds and ETFs will use Fidelity’s proprietary ESG ratings frameworks in addition to third-party ESG ratings to evaluate an issuer’s sustainable business practices. The mutual funds will have retail and advisor share classes.

“Fidelity continues to grow its sustainable investing lineup, with a range of equity, fixed income, and asset allocation strategies, as investors continue to seek opportunities to invest alongside their values and influence positive change in the world,” said Pam Holding, Co-Head of Equity and Head of Sustainable Investing at Fidelity Investments. “With the addition of these new sustainable fixed income strategies, our clients now have access to building blocks across multiple asset classes to help address their investment goals and priorities.”

Fidelity is an industry leader in thematic investing, now offering mutual funds and ETFs that cover a range of thematic categories, including megatrends, sustainability, outcome-oriented, differentiated insights, and disruption. With this launch, Fidelity’s sustainable lineup will include 22 funds, including thematic sustainable funds that focus on a specific ESG theme, and broad sustainable funds that include all three ESG themes, available at www.fidelity.com/sustainable.

Fidelity’s Commitment to Digital Assets

The addition of Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments ETF is one more milestone in advancing Fidelity’s position as a leader in digital assets. Fidelity began its exploration of blockchain technology in 2014 with bitcoin mining and in 2018 launched its first commercial offering: Fidelity Digital Assets℠, a platform that offers custody and trade execution for digital assets to institutional investors. In 2020, Fidelity’s digital asset management business launched a private bitcoin fund that is currently available to accredited investors. The new ETF offering allows a broader set of investors to participate in the emerging digital assets ecosystem through exposure to related equity securities.

See related article: NEUBERGER BERMAN LAUNCHES THREE ACTIVELY MANAGED ETFS MARKING THE NEXT EVOLUTION OF THEMATIC INVESTING

Principal Investment Strategies for Fidelity’s New Thematic and Sustainable Funds

• Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments ETF will normally invest at least 80% of assets in equity securities included in the Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments Index℠ and in depositary receipts representing securities included in the index. The Fidelity Crypto Industry and Digital Payments Index℠ is designed to reflect the performance of a global universe of companies engaged in activities related to cryptocurrency, related blockchain technology, and digital payments processing.
• Fidelity Metaverse ETF will normally invest at least 80% of assets in securities included in the Fidelity Metaverse Index℠ and in depositary receipts representing securities included in the index. “Metaverse” is a term used to describe a future state of the internet characterized by a network of both augmented reality and virtual worlds that can be experienced persistently and in a shared environment by large numbers of users. The Fidelity Metaverse Index℠ is designed to reflect the performance of a global universe of companies that develop, manufacture, distribute, or sell products or services related to establishing and enabling the Metaverse.
• Fidelity Sustainable Core Plus Bond Fund will normally invest at least 80% of assets in debt securities of all types that Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC (FMR; the Adviser) believes have positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits and repurchase agreements for those securities.
• Fidelity Sustainable Core Plus Bond ETF will normally invest at least 80% of assets in debt securities of all types that Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC (FMR; the Adviser) believes have positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits and repurchase agreements for those securities.
• Fidelity Sustainable Low Duration Bond Fund will normally invest at least 80% of assets in investment-grade debt securities (those of medium and high quality) of all types that Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC (FMR; the Adviser) believes have positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits and repurchase agreements for those securities.
• Fidelity Sustainable Low Duration Bond ETF will normally invest at least 80% of assets in investment-grade debt securities (those of medium and high quality) of all types that Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC (FMR; the Adviser) believes have positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits and repurchase agreements for those securities.
• Fidelity Sustainable Intermediate Municipal Income Fund will normally invest at least 80% of assets in investment-grade municipal securities (i) whose interest is exempt from federal income tax and (ii) that Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC (FMR; the Adviser) believes have positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits.

Source: Fidelity Investments