Giannis Antetokounmpo and Calamos Launch Sustainable Equity Fund at NYSE

Giannis Antetokounmpo ventured off the court to launch the Calamos Antetokounmpo Sustainable Equity Fund, at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.

The NBA star rang the NYSE closing bell to celebrate the launch of his exchange-traded fund (EFT) in partnership with investment management firm Calamos Investments. The Fund is a suite of environmental, social and governance funds.

"Let's try to change the world." – @Giannis_An34

Welcome Giannis, @Thanasis_ante43, @alex_ante29, and @Calamos to the NYSE in celebration of $SROI, the Calamos Antetokounmpo Global Sustainable Equities ETF pic.twitter.com/HaK4L4tPPw

— NYSE 🏛 (@NYSE) March 31, 2023

The NBA star told millions of young NBA fans not to be scared when it comes to investing.

“Be courageous, take the risk. Allow your money to work for you. Go out there, invest in things that you’re passionate about,” he told Yahoo Finance.

Antetokounmpo revealed that he was scared to invest when he was growing up in Greece because his family didn’t have money. However, he has a different timeline in mind for his two sons.

“I hope my kids can do that at an early age because I did it when I was 25, 26.”

Calamos Investments, the global investment management firm founded by Greek-American John Calamos, partnered with the NBA superstar to leverage their successes to try to make a difference and have a positive impact on society.

“Thrilled to announce Calamos Investments has partnered with NBA superstar and philanthropist Giannis Antetokounmpo in a joint venture—creating a suite of accessible, sustainable investing products that strive to perform and also give back,” John Koudounis, President and CEO of Calamos Investments, announced in February.

Koudounis said that Calamos Investments and Antetokounmpo share the aim of economic empowerment, financial education, and giving back, especially to young people in the community.

To meet this goal, they announced they are launching the new Calamos Antetokounmpo Sustainable Equity Funds, a suite of ESG funds that will be publicly accessible to investors.

To that end, the Calamos Antetokounmpo partnership structured as a joint venture adviser, Calamos Antetokounmpo Asset Management LLC, of which each is a 50% co-owner, seeks to donate a portion of its revenues to charity, and the funds will follow ESG investment principles.

Antetokounmpo: Partnership with Calamos an opportunity for a better world

“I’m grateful for this partnership since it allows us the opportunity to deliver impact on the grandest scale and leave a legacy of a better world for my children and all young people because they are the future. John and I share the principles of family, community, and economic empowerment,” Antetokounmpo said.

“The values that Giannis and I share forge the foundation for a great partnership. We chose to work together because we are both deeply passionate about our goals. We aspire to have a positive impact in the community and the world today in ways that can lead to greater well-being and a brighter tomorrow,” Koudounis said.

The ETF will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol SROI and the mutual fund ticker SROIX, acronyms for societal return on investment.

These innovative new funds are a hallmark of the tenure of John Koudounis, who assumed the position of Calamos CEO in 2016 and has more than 25 years of experience on Wall Street.

Since joining the firm, Koudounis has more than doubled its assets under management (AUM), from roughly $18 billion to almost $40 billion. He continues the expansion of Calamos’ actively managed product offerings to meet growing investor demand.

Founded in 1977, Calamos pioneered investing in convertible securities and liquid alternatives and has been a major player in the market for nearly a half-century.