WisdomTree has launched the WisdomTree AT1 CoCo Bond UCITS ETF (CCBO LN) on London Stock Exchange, providing exposure to contingent convertible (CoCo) bonds issued by financial institutions from developed European countries. Rafi Aviav, WisdomTree head of product development in Europe, said, “This is a major development for investors globally who can now, for the first time, gain diversified exposure in a UCITS structure to the AT1 CoCo market with the ease and efficiency of trading an ETF.”

DWS will close and liquidate three of its US-listed Xtrackers ETFs—the Xtrackers MSCI Brazil Hedged Equity ETF (DBBR US), Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Small Cap Hedged Equity ETF (DBES US), and Xtrackers MSCI Mexico Hedged Equity ETF (DBMX US). The funds, which collectively account for less than 1% of DWS’s total US AUM, will have their last day of trading on 31 May 2018.

While the volatility and inefficiencies of the Chinese equity market – inherent in most emerging market countries – lends itself to opportunities for active investment management, ETF provider Vanguard highlights that picking winners can be difficult over the long term. Instead, the asset management giant proposes that a low-cost and highly diversified indexing strategy is a good approach in any market, including China.

Global X Funds has launched the Global X Future Analytics Tech ETF (AIQ US) on Nasdaq Exchange. The fund provides access to companies that are generating vast amounts of data and developing proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) systems to derive actionable insights from that data. Alex Ashby, director of product development at Global X, said: “Given AI’s potential to impact a variety of sectors, we believe it is poised to become one of the most significant technological innovations of the modern era.”

By Martin Small, head of US iShares at BlackRock.

Recent flows suggest that investors are priming for a rougher but hopeful future. Here’s where the money went and why.

The proportion of passive funds within the global sustainable funds universe has increased from less than 6% five years ago to approximately 12% today, according to a report by investment research house Morningstar. The study notes this rise has been driven by the general trend towards passive investing and the development of more sophisticated indices on the back of better ESG data.

DWS has launched the Xtrackers II USD Emerging Markets Bond UCITS ETF (XUEM GY) on Xetra, providing exposure to investment grade and high yield emerging market bonds denominated in US dollars. The fund’s reference index is composed of bonds issued by governments, regional governments, or government-related entities.

MSCI, a leading provider of indices to the ETF industry, has revealed the first wave of China A share companies to be included in its flagship MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

HSBC Global Asset Management has cross-listed two of its actively managed ETFs – the HSBC Multi-Factor Worldwide Equity UCITS ETF (H41J GR) and HSBC Economic Scale Worldwide Equity UCITS ETF (H41I GR) – onto Xetra and Börse Frankfurt.

Tabula Investment Management is preparing to make its debut with the launch of a range of fixed income ETFs in Europe. The firm’s first ETFs will provide exposure to credit default swap (CDS) indices from IHS Markit. Michael John (‘MJ’) Lytle, CEO of Tabula, commented, “Passive strategies account for only 5% of fixed income fund assets, compared to 30% for equities. We expect this gap to close, but how quickly will depend on how compelling the available funds are.”