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23-Year Institutional Veteran to Lead Actively Managed Strategy Targeting the Historically Outperforming Factor Most U.S. Equity ETF Assets Overlook
Lauren Cassidy, CFA, has been named Chief Investment Officer of the Founders 100 ETF (ticker: FFF) , a U.S. growth equity ETF investing exclusively in Founder-Led companies.
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Lauren Cassidy, CFA, Chief Investment Officer of the Founders 100 ETF (FFF) at the New York Stock Exchange.
The Factor Most ETFs Miss
Bain & Company research shows Founder-Led companies in the S&P 500 Index outperformed non-founder-led peers by 3.1x over 25 years (1990-2014) and 2.1x over the following decade (2015-2024). Despite that track record, the 300 largest U.S.-listed equity ETFs, representing 90% of category AUM, allocate just 12.55% of their portfolio weight to companies with an original Founder still serving as a chief officer, according to Founder ETFs analysis. FFF is built to close that gap.
What's Your Founder Exposure?
Cassidy brings more than 23 years of institutional equity research and portfolio management experience, including roles at Sanford Bernstein, Cantillon Capital, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, and Westwood Holdings Group, where she co-managed billions across Large Cap Quality Value, All Cap Value, and Mid Cap Value strategies. She holds an MBA with Honors from Columbia Business School's Value Investing Program and a BBA with Honors from Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business.
"Upstream of the sustainable competitive advantages I identified was often a Founder," said Cassidy. "The Founder Factor is persistent across cycles, rate environments, and market regimes. Most investors inherit the Founder exposure of their indexes and own far fewer Founder-Led companies than they realize. We're happy to calculate your Founder exposure. Send us your holdings."
Designed for Consistency
As CIO, Cassidy leads a disciplined, repeatable process: screening approximately 6,000 U.S.-listed common stocks and REITs, identifying nearly 1,000 Founder-Led companies, filtering to the 200 largest by free-float market capitalization, and selecting 100 holdings based on proprietary fundamental criteria including balance sheet, income statement, cash flow, and valuation metrics. The portfolio may participate in select Founder-Led IPOs, typically exits when a Founder announces plans to step down, and reconstitutes quarterly following earnings season.
The resulting portfolio includes 100 Founder-Led companies across 10 GICS sectors, 21 industry groups, and 35 industries. FFF currently has a 31% allocation to Software and is primarily large cap, with 96% of holdings by market capitalization above $10 billion.
Two Founders. One Strategy.
"Lauren's institutional research depth and breadth, fundamental stock selection experience, and Founder philosophy make her the ideal partner to run this strategy," said Michael Monaghan, Founder, CEO, and Portfolio Manager of Founder ETFs. "Lauren has spent her career staying disciplined through fear and greed. FFF's rules-based framework, 80% systematic and 20% discretionary, is designed to help remove emotional decision-making at market extremes, when investors are most prone to excessive risk-taking, abandoning the investment process, or selling near market bottoms."
"Michael brings 28 years of combined investing and entrepreneurial experience, including roles at Goldman Sachs, Riverstone Holdings, Sanford Bernstein, and UBS. As a two-time Founder, he previously built Beartooth, whose wireless networking technology protects American and allied troops globally. Michael and I first worked together at Sanford Bernstein more than two decades ago. He is a bold, charismatic Founder whose vision complements my analytical, disciplined, and detail-oriented nature," said Cassidy.
Built for the Long Run
Founders 100 ETF seeks capital appreciation by investing at least 90% of assets in Founder-Led, U.S.-listed equities for investors with a 5+ year investment horizon. The fund reconstitutes quarterly with a maximum position size of 7.5% and has a net expense ratio of 0.75%. FFF trades on the Cboe BZX exchange (CUSIP: 350933107).
Founder ETFs LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser dedicated to providing investors access to high-conviction, Founder-Led companies through actively managed ETFs with the vision to "fill the world with the peace, joy, and freedom of prosperity."
Skin in the Game
"Raised by a Founder in Texas, I experienced both the thrill of success and the hardship of failure. From an early age I knew my calling was to help families build lasting prosperity. Michael and I are among FFF's largest investors and plan to invest alongside our shareholders for the next 30 years," said Cassidy.
Planting Seeds
A former Capital for Kids board member, Cassidy is donating one share of FFF to more than 70 rising seniors at Irma L. Rangel Young Women's Leadership School in Dallas. "The world is waiting for what only you can build. Wealth is built through ownership. You deserve to start building now," said Cassidy.
Disclosures
Investors should read the prospectus and carefully consider the Fund's investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing at : https://FounderETFs.com/FFF
Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Not investment advice. No affiliation or endorsement by Bain & Company. Bain & Company research defines "Founder-Led" as a company with a Founder serving as a chief officer or board member during that year; FFF excludes board members from its definition of "Founder-Led." Founder exposure reflects weight of Founder-Led companies. All data as of June 30, 2026, subject to change. Distributed by Vigilant Distributors LLC.
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Media Contact
Lauren Cassidy, CFA | Founder & Chief Investment Officer | Lauren@FounderETFs.com | 212.671.0596
Aaron Siegel | Vice President, Craft & Capital | Aaron@CraftandCapital.com | 212.473.4442
