Strive Asset Management Launches Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (NYSE: STXE) Amid Growing U.S.-China Tension

New fund launches with Day 1 investment of $100 million from a leading institutional investor

Strive reaffirms commitment not to build its own asset management business in China to avoid political conflicts of interest in serving U.S. clients

COLUMBUS, Ohio–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Strive Asset Management (�Strive”) launches its eighth index fund today: the Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (STXE). STXE is a passively managed ETF that seeks exposure to large- and mid-capitalization equity securities across twenty-four emerging market economies, excluding China, offering investors exposure to emerging markets while minimizing China-related risks. Strive believes that China’s autocratic regime, economic vulnerabilities, and military posture towards its neighbors, including Taiwan, create meaningful risks for global investors. Strive believes that other large environmental, social, and governance (ESG) promoting financial institutions with asset management businesses in China are unable to adequately educate U.S. clients about these risks due to their conflicts of interests in China.

Strive is launching STXE with $100 million from a leading institutional investor. With the launch of STXE, Strive also expands its product offerings to include international exposure to its clients. Strive will advance its pro-excellence agenda by mandating ex-U.S. companies to focus on excellence over political or social agendas, building on Strive’s approach to shareholder engagement and proxy voting in the U.S.

“ESG-promoting asset managers are vocal about supposed investment risks relating to board diversity and climate change, yet they are conspicuously silent about one of the most proximal investment risks that all investors face: the behaviors of Communist China,” notes Vivek Ramaswamy, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Strive. “It’s no mystery why: they have deep conflicts of interest in China that prevent them from being as vocal about these issues or from imposing the same ESG constraints onto Chinese companies as they do for U.S. companies. Strive refuses to build an asset management business in China to avoid these conflicts of interest so that we can better serve our U.S. clients as a vocal fiduciary advocating for excellence.”

“With the launch of STXE, we aim to offer our clients the opportunity to invest internationally,” said Anson Frericks, President and Co-Founder of Strive. “We are launching STXE at a moment of escalating cross-Straits tensions between the U.S., China, and Taiwan, and we expect these tensions to worsen during the course of Xi Jinping’s unprecedented third term with a rising risk of conflict surrounding Taiwan.”

About STXE: Strive Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (NYSE: STXE, expense ratio: 0.32%) seeks to track the total return performance, before fees and expenses, Bloomberg Emerging Market ex China Large & Mid Cap Index tracks large and mid-capitalization equity securities across 24 emerging market economies, excluding China. The benchmark does not pursue any environmental, social, governance (ESG) objectives. Investors can learn more at http://www.strivefunds.com/STXE.

About Strive Asset Management: Strive is an Ohio-based firm whose mission is to restore the voices of everyday citizens in the American economy by leading companies to focus on excellence over politics. The company was co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy and Anson Frericks in 2022. Learn more at www.strive.com.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses carefully before investing. For a prospectus or summary prospectus with this and other information about the Fund, please call 855-427-7360 or visit our website at www.strivefunds.com. Read the prospectus or summary prospectus carefully before investing.

Investments involve risk. Principal loss is possible. Emerging Markets Risk. Investments in securities and instruments traded in developing or emerging markets, or that provide exposure to those securities or markets, can involve additional risks relating to political, economic, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in U.S. securities and instruments. Foreign Investment Risk. Returns on investments in foreign securities could be more volatile than, or trail the returns on, investments in U.S. securities. Depositary Receipt Risk. The risks of investments in depositary receipts, including American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”), and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), are substantially similar to Foreign Investment Risk. Investment Risk. When you sell your Shares of the Fund, they could be worth less than what you paid for them. The Fund could lose money due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. Large Capitalization Companies Risk. Large-capitalization companies may trail the returns of the overall stock market. Large-capitalization stocks tend to go through cycles of doing better – or worse – than the stock market in general. Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk. The securities of mid-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of larger-capitalization companies. The securities of mid- capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than larger capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. Some mid-capitalization companies have limited product lines, markets, and financial and managerial resources and tend to concentrate on fewer geographical markets relative to larger capitalization companies. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) Risk. A REIT is a company that owns or finances income-producing real estate. Through its investments in REITs, the Fund is subject to the risks of investing in the real estate market, including decreases in property revenues, increases in interest rates, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, legal and regulatory changes, a lack of credit or capital, defaults by borrowers or tenants, environmental problems and natural disasters. Investments in REITs may be volatile. REITs are pooled investment vehicles with their own fees and expenses and the Fund will indirectly bear a proportionate share of those fees and expenses. Concentration Risk. In following its methodology, the Index from time to time maybe concentrated to a significant degree in securities of issuers located in a single industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Index concentrates in the securities of issuers in a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund also may concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent. By concentrating its investments in an industry or group of industries, the Fund may face more risks than if it were diversified broadly over numerous industries or groups of industries. If the Index is not concentrated in a particular industry or group of industries, the Fund will not concentrate in a particular industry or group of industries. Passive Investment Risk. The Fund is not actively managed and the Sub-Adviser will not sell any investments due to current or projected underperformance of the securities, industries or sector in which it invests, unless the investment is removed from the Index, sold in connection with a rebalancing of the Index as addressed in the Index methodology, or sold to comply with the Fund’s investment limitations (for example, to maintain the Fund’s tax status). The Fund will maintain investments until changes to its Index are triggered, which could cause the Fund’s return to be lower than if the Fund employed an active strategy. Equity Investing Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund holding equity securities, such as market fluctuations, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in stock prices. The values of equity securities could decline generally or could underperform other investments. Index Calculation Risk. The Index relies on various sources of information to assess the criteria of issuers included in the Index, including fundamental information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with limited operating history. As a result, prospective investors have a limited track record or history on which to base their investment decision.

ESG investing is defined as utilizing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria as a set of standards for a company’s operations that socially conscious investors use to screen potential investments.

Strive Asset Management and Strive ETFs are not affiliated with Quasar Distributors, LLC.

The Strive ETFs are distributed by Quasar Distributors, LLC.

Contacts

Media / PR requests for Strive: Please contact Elizabeth Aucamp at elizabeth@javelindc.com.