INVESCO FUNDS GROUP COMPLETES TRANSITION TO ADVISOR CHANNEL
Denver, CO - November 28, 2001 - INVESCO Funds Group announced today that
beginning March 1, 2002, the company will add A and B Class Shares to all of
their products to strengthen their relationship with financial advisors. The
company stated that this is in response to the growing trend toward investors
seeking professional financial advice. "Our goal is to be the most valued
investment manager to our clients; to make our products available in the
channels in which they choose to do business. For some time now, the fastest
growing segment of our business has been the broker/advisor channel, with
virtually all of our new net flows coming from financial advisors," said Ray
Cunningham, President of INVESCO Funds Group.
With more than 7,500 mutual fund choices, research indicates that investors
are soliciting more guidance in terms of planning their financial futures. In
a 2001 study of mutual fund shareholders, the Investment Company Institute
(ICI) found that the vast majority of mutual fund investors today rely on the
advice of a professional financial advisor when making mutual fund purchases
and sales decisions.
Cunningham stressed that this change does not apply to existing retail
shareholders. Current INVESCO customers may continue to invest, exchange or
redeem shares directly, on a no-load basis, in any fund. "We value these
relationships and will continue to help our current shareholders meet their
financial goals with the highest level of commitment. Their accounts will be
unaffected by our new fund structure," added Cunningham.
With the addition of Class A and B shares to existing INVESCO funds
(excluding INVESCOís variable investment and Treasurer's Series funds) the
firm will fully implement a multi-class strategy. INVESCO added Class C and
Class K shares to these funds in 2000.
Denver-based INVESCO Funds Group, a subsidiary of AMVESCAP PLC, has over $30
billion in assets under management (as of 9/30/01), and is one of the premier
mutual fund management companies in the United States. It provides a wide and
innovative range of investment products and services to individuals and
institutions. AMVESCAP has over $361 billion in assets under management (as
of 9/30/01) and is one of the worldís largest individual investment managers,
operating under the AIM and INVESCO brand names. The Company is listed on the
London, New York, Paris, Toronto and Frankfurt Stock Exchanges with the
symbol "AVZ."
Editors Note: We are required to include the following information with our
news release. For more information on INVESCO Funds, please call (800)
255-6927 for a prospectus containing more complete information including
management fees and expenses. Please read it carefully before you invest or
send money. INVESCO Distributors Inc., Distributor.
