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"Biblically Responsible" Investment Group Launches Fund Excluding LGBT-Friendly Companies

Inspire Investing CEO Robert Netzly predicts his funds will garner “hundreds of millions of dollars.”

Apple, Google, Starbucks. Most people would be thrilled to have these companies in their stock portfolio. But an investment group has launched two “biblically responsible” exchange-traded funds (ETF) that explicitly exclude companies supporting the LGBT community.

Aimed at conservative Christians, Inspire Investing launched what's believed to be the first ETFs that expressly filter out stocks of companies that have policies or statements supporting LGBT equality. The funds also screen out businesses involved in abortion, alcohol, gambling, pornography or terrorism. (What about guns, war, cigarettes or usury?)

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NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: (L-R) NASDAQ Vice President David Wicks, RuPaul, Executive Vice President of MTV & General Manager of MTV2, Chris McCarthy and Director NASDAQ OMX Robert Phillips attend the closing bell at NASDAQ MarketSite on February 24, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Paul Zimmerman/WireImage)

According to the Financial Times, the ETF game is big money: In 2016 it generated $3.5 trillion, attracting investors who "favor the funds’ passive but cheap approach over traditional human asset managers."

Niche investing is nothing new: There are funds that focus on progressive companies, and even a "Catholic Values" ETF that screens out defense contractors, but this is the first to exclude LGBT allies.

“There’s huge demand for low-cost investing aligned with biblical values,” says Robert Netzly, chief executive of Inspire, which donates half its profits to charities. “We love our neighbors in the LGBT community, but our investors want to invest according to conservative values.”

Part of the "biblically responsible investing" (BRI) movement, Netzly believes Jesus will shower his investors with gold for their prejudice, predicting his ETFs will garner “hundreds of millions of dollars” in the coming months. But more and more, corporate America has been at the forefront of supporting LGBT rights: Of the Fortune 500, 89% prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and many sponsor local Pride celebrations.

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA- JUNE 28: A group of Apple employees march in the San Francisco Gay Pride Parade, June 28, 2015 in San Francisco, California. The 2015 pride parade comes two days after the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision to legalize gay marriage in all 50 states. (Photo by Max Whittaker/Getty Images)

Companies like Apple, led by out CEO Tim Cook, have begun to issue amicus briefs in support of LGBT rights and, last year, SalesForce CEO Marc Benioff said his company would relocate out of Atlanta if Georgia passes a “religious freedom” law.

“This is out of step with mainstream America, which has embraced non-discriminatory policies and fairness,” the Equality Federation's Mark Snyder told FT. “I think it probably won’t garner much interest.”

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