First Union Corp.'s Evergreen Asset Management unit said it has dropped the word "insured" from the name of a mutual fund it manages, in order to comply with banking regulations.
The Evergreen Insured National Tax-Free Fund was renamed the Evergreen National Tax-Free Fund on Aug. 1. The fund's investment policy calls for it to hold at least 80% of its portfolio in insured municipal bonds -- a practice that will continue, despite the name change.
By dropping the "insured" label from the fund, Evergreen hopes to prevent investors from getting the mistaken impression that the fund carries Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. coverage. Banking regulators have been pressing banking companies to take steps to avoid any such confusion among customers.
Evergreen said it also scrapped the Evergreen Value Timing Fund name on Aug. 1, renaming that portfolio the Evergreen Growth and Income Fund. That change was made "in response to a lack of understanding by the investing public about the fund's investment approach," the company said.
First Union, a bank holding company based in Charlotte, N,C., completed its purchase of Evergreen Asset Management and its parent company, Lieber & Co., in June. Counting the Evergreen Funds, First Union managed $6.9 billion in mutual fund assets on June 30, according to Lipper Analytical Services, Summit, N.J.
