State Street Global Advisors, the investment management arm of State Street Corp., has launched its U.S. Community Investing Index strategy, an offering that seeks to match the returns and characteristics of the U.S. Community Investing Index.

"We are pleased to be the exclusive provider of an investment strategy that tracks the U.S. Community Investing Index," said Arlene Rockefeller, executive vice president and Global Equities CIO at State Street Global Advisors. "The USCII’s composition and tight historical tracking to the S&P 500 make our new offering a compelling option for a wide range of institutional investors who are seeking a passively-managed environmental, social and governance (ESG)-related solution with low-cost implementation."

The underlying investment approach for SSgA’s U.S. Community Investing Index strategy is to buy and hold securities with the aim to minimize turnover and transaction costs, trading only when the composition of the index changes or when cash flow activity occurs in the strategy, according to a statement.

Launched in 2005 by the F.B. Heron Foundation, in collaboration with Innovest Strategic Value Advisors, the U.S. Community Investing Index is comprised of more than 300 large- and mid-cap companies spanning all sectors that have demonstrated engagement with economically underserved populations in rural and urban communities nationwide.

The USCII employs a methodology that evaluates the community investment and engagement performance of a broad universe of companies, using three main factors: strategic alignment, workforce development and wealth creation and community engagement and corporate philanthropy.

"By positively screening for companies with strong track records in community investing, the U.S. Community Investing Index can be considered part of the second generation of the evolution of environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing," said Luther M. Ragin Jr., chief investment officer of the F.B. Heron Foundation.