Stone Harbor Investment Partners Introduces Emerging Markets Climate Impact Debt Fund

Actively managed, sustainable UCITS fund targets emerging market countriesThis is a marketing communication.

Stone Harbor Investment Partners, an investment manager of Virtus Investment Partners, Inc. (NYSE: VRTS), has launched the Stone Harbor Emerging Markets Climate Impact Debt (Bloomberg: STHEMDI) (the “Fund”), a UCITS fund classified as Article 9 under the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) that addresses decarbonization efforts occurring in Emerging Markets (EM) while seeking to deliver attractive long-term total returns for investors.

The Fund invests in sustainable debt issued with proceeds dedicated to environmental activities, assets, projects or expenditures, with social bonds also permissible, of EM corporate, sovereign, quasi-sovereign and supranational issuers in hard currency. The Fund, with a sustainable objective to promote the transition towards an environmentally and socially sustainable economy, seeks to outperform the J.P Morgan EM Credit Green, Social and Sustainability Bond Diversified Index (GESSIE EM Credit Div USD Hedged).

"Stone Harbor has incorporated sustainability factors into the EM debt investment process for well over a decade, and as issuance of emerging markets labelled bonds has grown alongside demand from our clients for sustainable investment solutions, we have responded with a comprehensive platform to cover the full spectrum of emerging markets fixed income exposure,” said James E. Craige, CFA, Stone Harbor’s chief investment officer and head of Emerging Markets, who oversees the management of the Fund. “The new Fund brings together our specialist investment skills in emerging markets with a sustainable investment framework that meets the Article 9 requirements of institutional investors.”

In addition to Craige, the Stone Harbor investment team managing the Fund includes Deputy Chief Investment Officer Stuart Slater-Booth and Portfolio Managers Steffen Reichold, Richard Lange and Darin Batchman.

“The market for emerging markets green and sustainable bonds has been developing rapidly and now offers broad diversification in liquid markets as the Fund aims to provide access to measurable, high-impact investments while at the same time offering attractive risk-adjusted returns,” Reichold said.

The Fund’s investments are identified through the Stone Harbor SFDR sustainable investments framework and complements the firm’s Article 8 UCITS fund, the Stone Harbor Emerging Markets Corporate Debt Fund.

“To support our sustainability strategy, Stone Harbor helped transition our portfolio from traditional EM debt investments to a strategy focused on green and sustainable bonds that is managed in line with Article 9 requirements,” said Marius Daheim of BarmeniaGothaer Asset Management, based in Cologne, Germany.

About Stone Harbor Investment Partners

Stone Harbor Investment Partners is a global credit specialist with three decades of expertise in emerging and developed markets debt. Stone Harbor’s investment team – portfolio managers, credit analysts, economists, quantitative analysts, and risk management professionals – engages in disciplined and regular collaboration to carefully construct their global macroeconomic outlook and strategic allocation framework. As a research-driven firm, Stone Harbor drills deeply into the fundamentals to determine the attractiveness of individual credits, currencies, interest rates, and yield curves to find the best investments within select asset classes.

About Virtus Investment Partners, Inc.

Virtus Investment Partners (NYSE: VRTS) is a distinctive partnership of boutique investment managers singularly committed to the long-term success of individual and institutional investors. We provide investment products and services from our investment managers, each with a distinct investment style and autonomous investment process, as well as select subadvisers. Investment solutions are available across multiple disciplines and product types to meet a wide array of investor needs. Additional information about our firm, investment partners, and strategies is available at virtus.com.

Risk Considerations

Interest Rate:The values of debt instruments may rise or fall in response to changes in interest rates, and this risk may be enhanced for securities with longer maturities.Currency Rate:Fluctuations in the exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies may negatively affect the value of the portfolio’s shares. Emerging Markets Risk:Investments in emerging markets may involve a higher degree of risk. Assets may not be properly held in custody and, as a result, may be lost. It may be more difficult to sell assets at a fair price in emerging markets. ESG:The interpretation of ESG and sustainability criteria is subjective meaning that the fund may invest in companies which similar funds do not (and thus perform differently) and which do not align with the personal views of any individual investor. The portfolio's consideration of ESG factors could cause the portfolio to perform differently from other portfolios. While Stone Harbor Investment Partners believes that the integration of ESG factors into the portfolio's investment process has the potential to contribute to performance, ESG factors may not be considered for every investment decision and there is no guarantee that the integration of ESG factors will result in better performance. There is no guarantee that ESG integration and engagement will enhance the quality of asset allocation or portfolio construction. ESG characteristics and risks could have a materially positive or negative impact on the performance of a Fund.Credit Risk:The issuers of securities or similar instruments that we buy may not be able to make payments, which could lead to an investment loss. This risk is greater for investments with a medium or low credit rating.Counterparty:There is risk that a party upon whom the portfolio relies to complete a transaction will default.Derivatives Risk:A small movement in the value of the underlying asset may cause a large movement in the value of the derivative which can result in a loss to the Fund.Investment Risk:Investing is subject to risk, including the risk of possible loss of principal. Prospectus: For more information in relation to these and other risks, please refer to the “Characteristics and Risks of Securities and Investment Techniques” section of the prospectus.

The fund described above is a sub-fund of Stone Harbor Investment Funds plc (the “Fund”), an investment company with variable capital incorporated with limited liability in Ireland and established as an umbrella fund with segregated liability between the funds pursuant to the European Communities (Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities) Regulations, 2011 (as amended). Please refer to the current prospectus and to the relevant PRIIPS KID/KIID before making any final investment decision. The prospectus for the Fund, the PRIIPS KID/KIID for each of the share classes of the Fund (in an official language of the relevant jurisdiction), and the summary of investor rights (in English) are available online at globalfunds.virtus.com or may be received upon request via email by contacting legal@shipemd.com. Share classes of certain sub-funds are currently notified for marketing into a number of EU Member States under the UCITS Directive. A decision may be taken at any time to terminate the arrangements made for the marketing of the sub-fund in any Member State in which it is currently marketed. In such circumstances, Shareholders in the affected Member State will be notified of this decision and will be provided with the opportunity to redeem their shareholding in the Fund free of any charges or deductions for at least 30 working days from the date of such notification. The sub-funds have not been registered under the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended. The Fund is not available for sale in the U.S. or to U.S. Persons. This information and material shown on this page are for information only and do not constitute an offering or investment, legal, tax or other advice. The information shown on this page constitutes an advertising document in certain jurisdictions.

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