Purpose Investments Inc. is working with Morgan Stanley to sell a minority stake in the company, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

The Toronto-based ETF provider is looking to sell a 25-per-cent stake or less to a global player to help it expand into other markets, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the details are private. Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, one of Canada’s largest pension funds, is a minority shareholder in the company.

Purpose and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. Omers didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Purpose Investments manages more than $7.5 billion (US$5.7 billion) in assets. In October, it announced plans to incorporate environmental, social and governance ratings into its funds as more people seek to include ethics into their investing calculus.

Chief Executive Officer Som Seif founded Purpose Investments after he sold Canadian ETF powerhouse Claymore Investments Inc. to a unit of BlackRock Inc. in 2012. Claymore grew to manage $8 billion in assets. Prior to Claymore, Seif was an investment banker with RBC Capital Markets.

Seif said in a June interview that it was his goal to grow Purpose’s assets to C$30 billion over the next five years, including into private debt. The firm had expanded to 260 people after recent acquisitions, from about 20 people two years ago.