Global indices built on the founder-led classification
Lumenary indices apply the founder-led classification to listed equities worldwide and are calculated and administered independently. A global all-cap flagship leads the family, alongside indices that narrow the founder-led universe by theme or region. Lumenary licenses each index for benchmarking, product issuance and mandates.
The index family
Every index in the family, with its region and focus; each name opens the index page.
| Index | Region | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Solactive Lumenary Global Founders Index Flagship | Global, 46 countries | All market capitalisations |
| Solactive Lumenary AI G2 Founders Index Thematic | US and Asia | Artificial intelligence |
| Solactive Lumenary Global Founders Connect Index Regional | US and Asia | Customised for the Asian market |
Every index follows published rules
Each index in the family is constructed and calculated under rules published by the index administrator. The flagship applies the founder-led classification across every capitalisation band; any narrower focus, such as a theme or a region, is written into an index’s rules rather than applied by judgement.
There are no discretionary overrides and no changes outside the methodology’s published review cadence. The classification is refreshed annually, so companies enter and leave the universe as their leadership does.
Because every index inherits the same classification discipline, a licensee of any Lumenary index is licensing the same underlying research.
Performance
Index levels, constituent data and performance history are published by the index administrator. The record below is Lumenary’s research on the founder-led cohort that every index is built on, set out in full in The Founder Effect Annual Report 2026.
| Measure | Founder-led cohort | Benchmark |
|---|---|---|
| Annualised total return1 | 17.10% | 13.53% |
| Total-return series, indexed to 1,000 at January 20162 | 5,031 | 3,665 |
Non-founder-led companies returned 11.9% a year over the same period.1 Founder-led companies made up 26.4% of global equity market capitalisation in 2026, up from 11.6% in 2016.1
¹ Lumenary Research, The Founder Effect Annual Report 2026. Annualised total return, January 2016 to April 2026; an advantage of roughly 357 basis points a year over the benchmark. Risk over the same period: 18.66% annualised standard deviation and −42.65% maximum drawdown for the founder-led cohort, against 14.23% and −33.60% for the benchmark. Results are historical and partly backtested; past or simulated performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. ² Total-return series indexed to 1,000 at January 2016.
Independent calculation and administration, a classification maintained as research and refreshed annually, and a public methodology change log: the governance issuers and asset owners expect of a benchmark.
Index updates
Evidence on founder-led companies and notices on the index family, delivered when published.
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