All entries by this author
Jun 2nd, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
US electronic stock exchange group Bats Global Markets has launched a liquidity management provider (LMP) program on the Bats ETF Marketplace, in a bid to incentivise exchange traded-product liquidity providers to trade on Bats. LMPs who meet LMP requirements will be eligible for a rebate per share traded. Bryan Harkins, Executive Vice President, Head of US Markets, at Bats, said: “In addition to our existing Lead Market Maker Program, the LMP Program offers unique economic incentives tied to quoting activity.”
Posted in ETF and Index News |
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Tags: Commodities, Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, Fixed Income, United States and Canada
Jun 2nd, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
According to research published by Natixis Global Asset Management, more than 75% of investors believe ETFs and other index funds provide a cheaper means of accessing the market; however, 71% also believe they are less risky than other investment vehicles. Natixis believes that while index funds and ETFs do provide a cost efficient means of accessing market exposures, a belief in their ability to reduce inherent market risks may be misplaced. John Hailer, CEO of Natixis Global Asset Management for the Americas and Asia, commented: “Index funds have a place in portfolios, but their low cost seems to be providing a ‘halo effect’ that could blind-side investors during volatile markets.”
Posted in ETF and Index News |
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Tags: Commodities, Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, Fixed Income, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada
Jun 1st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
Leading European exchange-traded fund provider Lyxor has launched two new ETFs that provide investors with exposure to rising inflation expectations. The Lyxor USD 10Y Inflation Breakeven UCITS ETF (INFU) and Lyxor EUR 2-10Y Inflation Breakeven UCITS ETF (INFL) target the spreads between traditional bond yields and those of inflation-linked bonds, thus offering a pure play on inflation expectations without exposing the investor to changing interest rates. Francois Millet, Head of ETF and Index Product Development at Lyxor, commented: “Lyxor’s Breakeven UCITS ETFs gives investors exposure to the breakeven rate of inflation with the benefit of transparency and liquidity, thus turning it into a proper and investable asset class”.
Posted in Fixed Income |
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Tags: ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, Europe, Fixed Income, Lyxor, Markit, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada
Jun 1st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
Low volatility and high dividend smart beta strategies are the most popular choices with first time investors, according to research commissioned by Invesco PowerShares. Dividend and low volatility strategies attracted praise from 72% and 69% of first time smart beta users, respectively, stating they are likely to consider such strategies. Bryon Lake, Head of Invesco PowerShares – EMEA, said: “The findings of this research are confirmed by our market experience. We launched the PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility UCITS ETF one year ago, and it has since then significantly outperformed its benchmark and attracted strong asset inflows.”
Posted in Equities |
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Tags: Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, High Income, Invesco, S&P Dow Jones, Smart Beta, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada
Jun 1st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
According to the third annual global institutional market survey – Smart Beta: 2016 Global Survey Findings from Asset Owners – FTSE Russell shows that smart beta index adoption rates in Europe have been the highest globally over the past three years. Of those European asset owners surveyed, 52% have adopted smart beta indices, compared to 28% in North America and 38% in Asia. The segment with the largest growth in adoption, from 15% in 2014 to 47% in 2016, has been European asset owners with under $1bn in assets.
Posted in ETF and Index News |
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Tags: Asia Pacific, Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, Europe, FTSE, Russell Indexes, Smart Beta, United States and Canada
May 31st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
Leading global index provider S&P Dow Jones Indices has celebrated the 120th anniversary of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), a widely followed indicator for US stock market performance. The index, designed to reflect the health of the broad US economy, is a price-weighted average of 30 stocks traded on the New York and NASDAQ exchanges. It also serves as the benchmark for several exchange-traded funds from providers such as State Street Global Advisors, iShares and ProShares.
Posted in Equities |
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Tags: Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, iShares, ProShares, S&P Dow Jones, SSGA SPDR, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada
May 31st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
An increasing number of asset managers are using exchange-traded funds to get passive fixed income exposure, according to research from global analytics firm Cerulli Associates. Cerulli found that the broad ETF industry experienced another month of positive net inflows with more asset managers using ETFs as vehicles for fixed income exposure. According to the report, US ETF assets grew for a third straight month in April, increasing 1.7% to finish just greater than $2.2tn. Flows into the funds were positive, at $8.9bn with significant demand noted for taxable bond ETFs, which garnered flows of $3.1bn.
Posted in Fixed Income |
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Tags: Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETFGI, Europe, Fixed Income, Global, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada
May 31st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
Smart beta index provider ERI Scientific Beta has announced a fresh approach to index pricing that may disrupt the traditional model of fixed fees on assets under management. Investors will be able to request a pure performance fee structure that levies charges only if the index has actually outperformed its cap-weighted benchmark. The fee structure is available on the Scientific Beta Multi-Beta Multi-Strategy indices. Noël Amenc, CEO of ERI Scientific Beta, said: “Our rationale for this mandate offer is that smart beta providers’ claims on the quality and robustness of their strategies should materialise in their live performance. ERI Scientific Beta’s initiative is intended to provide consistency between the smart beta provider’s revenues and the quality of its offering.”
Posted in ETF and Index News |
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Tags: EDHEC-Risk, Equities, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, Europe, Global, Smart Beta, United Kingdom, United States and Canada
May 31st, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
The US municipal market is the largest in the world with total assets of over $3.7tn. ETF providers such as iShares, State Street Global Advisors, Van Eck Global and PowerShares all have funds with over $1bn in AUM covering the space. While municipal bonds may not repeat the kind of superior returns achieved in 2015 where they were the best performing asset type of that year, the stable outlook given across all 50 states from ratings agency Fitch along with the bond’s tax advantaged nature, may provide investors with an attractive means to increase their after-tax income returns.
Posted in Fixed Income |
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Tags: ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, Fixed Income, High Income, High Yield, iShares, SSGA SPDR, United States and Canada, VanEck Vectors
May 27th, 2016 |
By James Lord, CFA
Global exchange-traded fund provider iShares has launched Europe’s first ETF to invest in high quality US mortgage-backed securities. The iShares US Mortgage Backed Securities UCITS ETF (IMBS LN) provides access to AAA-rated mortgage-backed securities issued by three agencies (Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) backed by the US government.Brett Olson, Head of iShares EMEA Fixed income, commented in a statement: “Mortgage-backed securities have the potential to offer higher yields than bonds of similarly high credit quality. This fund could be an option for investors looking to gain exposure to the US housing market in addition to corporate balance sheets.”
Posted in Fixed Income |
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Tags: Barclays, ETF and Index News, ETF Industry News, ETF Launch, Europe, Fixed Income, iShares, Themes and Strategy, United States and Canada