With the launch on Thursday of a new stock fund from JLens, individual investors will, for the first time, be able to invest in companies on the New York Stock Exchange that support Israel and combat antisemitism, Jewish Insider has learned.
Under the ticker symbol “TOV” — the Hebrew word for “good” — investors will have access to the JLens 500 Jewish Advocacy U.S. Index, which comprises the 500 largest U.S. public companies and screens out companies whose activities do not align with Jewish values, including supporting the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement, according to the investor advocacy organization. JLens was acquired by the Anti-Defamation League in 2022.
Several U.S. Jewish organizations — including the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, Atlanta Jewish Foundation and Jewish Community Partners (Memphis) — have committed to invest over $100 million in seed capital to launch the new fund.
The initiative is groundbreaking in that individuals, not just federations or other communal organizations, can invest, Ari Hoffnung, JLens managing director and ADL’s senior advisor on corporate advocacy, told JI. “Until now there’s been institutional investment vehicles,” Hofnung said. “These have minimums of $1 million and above, which is fine for a federation which has an endowment of $100 million, but most regular investors don’t have a million dollars or more to put into this.”
Hoffnung said that TOV has “eliminated the economic barriers to Jewish values investing.” Individuals can purchase a share for just $25 on the NYSE through any online platform.
“People of other faiths have investment vehicles that they can invest in that are affordable,” Hoffnung said. “This really represents the first time that there’s going to be a Jewish values-based product that everyone can participate in.”
“The launch of TOV reflects the need for a strong, deliberate and innovative response to the unprecedented spike in antisemitism following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “In the aftermath of this event, we have seen a wave of actions against corporations by the BDS movement, as well as more Jewish employees finding themselves in hostile workplaces, which demands a robust response.”
Communities that have already committed to invest in the TOV fund expressed excitement to be among the first to take part in the initiative.
Lindsay Kopecky, chief advancement officer of the Atlanta Jewish Foundation, called it a “new tool to stand up against antisemitism and anti-Israel bias.”
“We are proud to bring this innovative investment strategy to the Memphis Jewish community and the Jewish Foundation of Memphis investment platform,” Charles Jalenak, investment chair of Jewish Community Partners, said in a statement. “By investing philanthropic funds in TOV, our donors are provided an effective tool to take meaningful action against antisemitism and support Israel.”
Peter Chiswick, director of investments at the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, said, “as one of the first institutional investors in TOV, we’re proud to align our endowment with the Jewish values that TOV represents.”
