NEW YORK, Sept. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- J.P. Morgan Asset Management today announced the launch of its first alternative and actively managed ETF, JPMorgan Diversified Alternatives ETF (JPHF). The ETF provides investors with diversified exposure to hedge funds strategies including equity long/short, event driven and global macro strategies.

A global leader in alternatives investing, J.P. Morgan manages more than $120bn in alternatives globally. JPHF was designed and is managed by Yazann Romahi, Global Head of Quantitative Beta Solutions at J.P. Morgan Asset Management. A pioneer in hedge fund beta investing, Romahi created the ETF with the support of a team of 17 investment specialists who have been focused on beta philosophy research and development for more than a decade. In addition, the team manages over $3.5bn of assets in alternative beta with this ETF being the latest extension of their offering.

JPHF aims to democratize hedge fund investing by providing investors with institutional quality hedge fund strategy in a cost efficient, tradeable ETF wrapper. The ETF can serve as a core component of a portfolio's alternatives allocation. The bottom-up approach results in a purer capture of the hedge fund exposure and better diversification than traditional hedge fund replication strategies, as it employs strategies that have true low correlation to traditional markets.

"In the past, alternative investments have been an exclusive option only accessible by a small portion of investors; however, JPHF now makes these investment vehicles available to a wider array of investors," said Robert Deutsch, Head of ETFs for J.P. Morgan Asset Management. "Alternative beta strategies provide investors with true diversification with attractive liquidity, transparency and cost."

"Since 2005, we've had a team dedicated to researching and developing a leading alternative beta capability and we are thrilled to adapt this strategy for a new investment wrapper," said Yazann Romahi. "JPHF helps to increase diversification, reduce overall portfolio volatility and deliver higher portfolio risk-adjusted returns."

With the launch of JPHF, J.P. Morgan Asset Management's Diversified Return ETF suite features nine product offerings. J.P. Morgan Asset Management is in the top 10 in ETF flows this year with $400 million coming into our ETF range. J.P. Morgan was also named one of the "Most Trusted" ETF providers according to Cogent Reports' 2016 Advisor Brandscape report and was awarded "Most innovative equity ETF - performance" award by Fund Action for its JPMorgan Diversified Return Global Equity (JPGE) product.

About J.P. Morgan Funds

J.P. Morgan Funds is the mutual fund arm of J.P. Morgan Asset Management. It is the 7(th) largest long-term manager in the U.S., with over $263 billion in long-term assets under management across a broad range of investment strategies in fixed income, equity, multi-asset, alternatives and absolute return.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management, with assets under management of $1.7 trillion (as of March 31, 2016), is a global leader in investment management. J.P. Morgan Asset Management's clients include institutions, retail investors and high-net worth individuals in every major market throughout the world. J.P. Morgan Asset Management offers global investment management in equities, fixed income, real estate, hedge funds, private equity and liquidity. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), the parent company of J.P. Morgan Asset Management, is a leading global financial services firm with assets of approximately $2.4 trillion (as of March 31, 2016) and operations in more than 60 countries. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.

Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives and risks as well as charges and expenses of the fund before investing. The summary and full prospectuses contain this and other information about the fund. Read the prospectus carefully before investing. Call 1-844-4JPM-ETF or visit jpmorganetfs.com to obtain a prospectus.

Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal.

Investments in smaller companies may be riskier, more volatile and more vulnerable to economic, market and industry changes. There is no guarantee that the use of long and short positions will succeed in limiting the Fund's exposure to domestic stock market movements, capitalization, sector-swings or other risk factors. Investment in a portfolio involved in long and short selling may have higher portfolio turnover rates. This will likely result in additional tax consequences. Short selling involves certain risks, including additional costs associated with covering short positions and a possibility of unlimited loss on certain short sale positions. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and financial industry regulatory authorities in other countries may impose prohibitions, restrictions or other regulatory requirements on short sales, which could inhibit the ability of the adviser to enter into short sale transactions on behalf of the Fund. Investments in bonds and other debt securities will change in value based on changes in interest rates. If rates rise, the value of these investments generally drops. Securities with greater interest rate sensitivity and longer are subject to greater fluctuations in value. Credit risk is the risk of loss of principal or loss of a financial reward stemming from a borrower's failure to repay a loan or otherwise meet a contractual obligation.

International investing involves a greater degree of risk and increased volatility. Changes in currency exchange rates and differences in accounting and taxation policies outside the U.S. can raise or lower returns. Also, some overseas markets may not be as politically and economically stable as the United States and other nations. Investments that are concentrated in a single country or region are subject to the additional risk associated with a smaller number of issuers. International investing bears greater risk due to social, economic, regulatory and political instability in countries in "emerging markets." This makes emerging market securities more volatile and less liquid developed market securities. Changes in exchange rates and differences in accounting and taxation policies outside the U.S. can also affect returns. Investing in alternative assets involves higher risks than traditional investments and is suitable only for sophisticated investors. Alternative investments involve greater risks than traditional investments and should not be deemed a complete investment program. They are not tax efficient and an investor should consult with his/her tax advisor prior to investing. Alternative investments have higher fees than traditional investments and they may also be highly leveraged and engage in speculative investment techniques, which can magnify the potential for investment loss or gain. The value of the investment may fall as well as rise and investors may get back less than they invested. The Fund will also employ various alternative investment strategies that involve the use of complicated investment techniques. There is no guarantee that these strategies will succeed and their use may subject the Fund to greater volatility and loss. Alternative strategies involve complex securities transactions that involve risks in addition to those risks with direct investments in securities. The Fund will invest in derivatives, including swaps, futures, options, and forward contracts, which may be riskier than other types of investments and may increase the volatility of the Fund. Derivatives may be sensitive to changes in economic and market conditions and may create leverage, which could result in significant losses. Derivatives expose the Fund to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the derivative counterparty will not fulfill its contractual obligations (and includes credit risk associated with the counterparty). Under normal market conditions, the adviser currently expects that a significant portion of the Fund's exposure will be attained through the use of derivatives. Investing in derivatives will result in a form of leverage, which may be significant. Leverage involves special risks. Derivatives may not perform as expected, so the Fund may not realize the intended benefits. When used for hedging, the change in value of a derivative may not correlate as expected with the currency, security or other risk being hedged. In addition, given their complexity, derivatives expose the Fund to risks of mispricing or improper valuation. The Fund may be more volatile than if the Fund had not been leveraged because leverage tends to exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of the Fund's portfolio securities. The Fund cannot assure that the use of leverage will result in higher returns, and using leverage could result in a net loss. The Fund will likely engage in active and frequent trading leading to increased portfolio turnover, higher transaction costs, and the possibility of increased capital gains.

Past performance does not guarantee future results.

There is no guarantee the funds will meet their investment objective.

Diversification may not protect against market loss.

J.P. Morgan Exchange-Traded Funds are distributed by SEI Investments Distribution Co, One Freedom Valley Dr., Oaks, PA 19456, which is not affiliated with JPMorgan Chase & Co. or any of its affiliates.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management is the marketing name for the asset management businesses of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Those businesses include, but are not limited to, JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc., Security Capital Research & Management Incorporated, J.P. Morgan Alternative Asset Management, Inc., and J.P. Morgan Asset Management (Canada), Inc.

NOT FDIC INSURED | NO BANK GUARANTEE | MAY LOSE VALUE

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SOURCE J.P. Morgan Asset Management