RY Royal Bank of Canada

TORONTO, Jan. 17, 2023 /CNW/ - RBC iShares today announced the launch of RBC Canadian Dividend Covered Call ETF and RBC U.S. Dividend Covered Call ETF (collectively, "the Covered Call ETFs"). The new Covered Call ETFs are managed by RBC Global Asset Management Inc. ("RBC GAM Inc."), and are expected to begin trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange today.

Designed for investors seeking a current source of income while mitigating some downside risk, the Covered Call ETFs leverage RBC GAM Inc.'s long-standing expertise in active management, combining the selection of stocks that are expected to provide dividends with an active covered call writing strategy. The solutions will seek to provide exposure to the performance of a diversified portfolio of Canadian or U.S. equity securities, as applicable, that are expected to provide regular income from dividends and have the potential for long term capital growth while mitigating some downside risk through the use of covered call options.

The Covered Call ETFs will be managed by RBC GAM Inc.'s North American Equities team.

"In response to today's uncertain market environment, investment solutions offering enhanced income streams with some ability to reduce volatility have become attractive to investors," said Stu Kedwell, Senior Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager, Co-Head of North American Equities, RBC Global Asset Management Inc. "The RBC covered call ETFs are designed to meet this need, utilizing RBC Global Asset Management's demonstrated expertise in active dividend investing combined with our capabilities in option writing."

More information about the Covered Call ETFs can be found here.

RBC iShares are ETFs comprised of RBC ETFs managed by RBC Global Asset Management Inc. and iShares ETFs managed by BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited. Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investing in ETFs. Please read the relevant prospectus before investing. ETFs are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional.

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RBC Global Asset Management (RBC GAM) is the asset management division of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and includes money managers BlueBay Asset Management and Phillips, Hager & North Investment Management. RBC GAM is a provider of global investment management services and solutions to institutional, high-net-worth and individual investors through separate accounts, pooled funds, mutual funds, hedge funds, exchange-traded funds and specialty investment strategies. The RBC GAM group of companies manage approximately $540 billion in assets and have approximately 1,500 employees located across Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia.

BlackRock's purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate.

iShares unlocks opportunity across markets to meet the evolving needs of investors. With more than twenty years of experience, a global line-up of 1300+ exchange traded funds (ETFs) and US$2.91 trillion in assets under management as of December 31, 2022, iShares continues to drive progress for the financial industry. iShares funds are powered by the expert portfolio and risk management of BlackRock.

SOURCE RBC Global Asset Management Inc.