J.P. Morgan Selected by Precidian Funds to Service First U.S.-Listed Nikkei 225 ETF

New York, July 13, 2011– J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services (WSS) today announced that it has been appointed by Precidian Funds LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Precidian Investments LLC, to provide fund administration, fund accounting and custody services to its newly launched MAXIS℠ Nikkei 225 Index exchange traded fund (ETF). The MAXIS℠ Nikkei 225 Index Fund (NKY:NYSE Arca), which began trading today, is the first U.S.-based Nikkei 225 ETF.

Precidian Investments, through an arrangement with Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., Ltd., has been granted an exclusive license to establish the only U.S. Nikkei 225 ETF.  The Nikkei 225 Index, the foremost Japanese equity benchmark, comprises 225 liquid stocks in the 1st section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. This index has been recognized around the globe as the premier index of Japanese stocks for the last 60 years. 

As a pioneer in the creation of innovative financial products, Precidian Investments specializes in exchange-traded products/funds, mutual fund development, and associated trading and pricing technologies. J.P. Morgan currently provides depository services for the CurrencyShares Platform, nine currency-backed exchange traded products (ETPs), which were developed in partnership with Precidian Investments and sponsored by Rydex SGI. These products, which are also the first of their kind in the US, are traded under the CurrencyShares platform with total assets of $3.55 billion as of July 7, 2011.

J.P. Morgan offers a full suite of services for the development, launch and servicing of ETFs. Industry-wide, J.P. Morgan currently services 200 ETFs with total assets of over $100 billion.
Chris Lynch, Americas Markets Manager for J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services, said: “We are delighted to have this opportunity to expand our relationship with Precidian Funds. J.P. Morgan has a rich history of innovation in the ETF space, with a commitment to the fund service business and pioneering technology, and we look forward to working with Precidian on their newly launched ETF.”

“By selecting J.P. Morgan to service this ETF we are building upon an existing strategic partnership and we are confident that its support will be a vital component to the success of this new fund,” said Precidian Chief Executive Daniel J. McCabe.

For more information about Precidian Investments, please visit www.precidian.com . To learn more about J.P. Morgan fund services, please visit www.jpmorgan.com/visit/etf.

About Precidian Investments
Precidian Investments is a pioneer in the creation of innovative financial products, specializing in exchange-traded products/funds (ETP/ETF) and mutual fund development, and associated trading and pricing technologies.  Principals of Precidian Investments provided the intellectual capital and execution in the development of the ground-breaking gold ETP: SPDR Gold Shares (GLD: NYSE Arca), the first commodity-backed ETP in the US.  Further product innovation includes the development of the first currency-backed ETPs in the US, in partnership with Rydex SGI. Additional information about Precidian Investments is available at www.precidian.com .

About J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services
J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services (WSS) is a premier securities servicing provider that helps institutional investors, alternative asset managers, broker dealers and equity issuers optimize efficiency, mitigate risk and enhance revenue. A business of JP Morgan Chase & Co., WSS leverages the firm’s global scale, leading technology and deep industry expertise to service investments around the world.  It has $16.6 trillion in assets under custody and $7.5 trillion in funds under administration. For more information, go to www.jpmorgan.com/wss.  

About JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.2 trillion and operations in more than 60 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.

MAXIS℠ is a registered service mark of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., Ltd.  The Nikkei Stock Average is the intellectual property of Nikkei Inc. Nikkei Inc. reserves all the rights to the index. The Maxis Nikkei 225 Index Fund is not in any way sponsored, endorsed or promoted by Nikkei. Nikkei does not make any warranty or representation regarding the Fund.

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