Illinois-based investment firm Elkhorn Investments has launched an exchange-traded fund offering access to investment grade preferred shares of US companies. The Elkhorn S&P High Quality Preferred ETF (Bats: EPRF) may appeal to investors looking for regular income-generating securities while still being able to participate in the upside potential of the firm. “Preferreds remain an area of strong investor interest given their relative high income,” said Ben Fulton, CEO of Elkhorn Investments. “We are excited to launch the first high quality preferred ETF, offering investors access to higher income through preferred securities without sacrificing credit quality.”

Amundi ETF has launched two new smart beta European equity ETFs on Euronext Paris targeting momentum and quality factor exposures. The ETFs are designed to help investors perform their asset allocation choices and are cheaper than existing ETFs on the same underlying. The Amundi ETF MSCI Europe Momentum Factor UCITS ETF (MCEU) and the Amundi ETF MSCI Europe Quality Factor UCITS ETF (QCEU) have a TER of 0.23%. Fannie Wurtz, Managing Director at Amundi ETF, Indexing & Smart Beta, said: “The development of a full range of mono and multi-factor smart beta exposures is in line with our strategy to offer a comprehensive toolbox of smart beta solutions.”

Italian global banking and financial services company UniCredit has become the latest firm to list an exchange-traded fund on SIX Swiss Exchange. The firm has cross-listed the UC Thomson Rheuters Balanced European Convertible Bond UCITS ETF which was previously launched on Xetra. Convertible bonds are hybrid debt instruments that can be converted into a pre-determined number of the issuer’s shares. This allows the bond to participate in the upside potential of a company’s stock price. UniCredit will also act as market maker for the fund.

The world’s largest exchange-traded fund provider iShares has launched an ETF offering currency hedged exposure to Japanese equities that have been screened for positive environmental, social and governance (ESG) characteristics. The iShares Sustainable MSCI Japan SRI EUR Hedged UCITS ETF (SUSJ) is trading on the London Stock Exchange in euros and British pounds, and on Xetra in euros. An increasing body of research is emerging that shows that by tilting towards companies exhibiting ESG strength, indices are better able to capture long-term sustainable returns by avoiding companies subject to social and environmental risks and favouring those which follow good management techniques. During 2015 the fund’s underlying index, the MSCI Japan SRI 100% Hedged to EUR Index, gained 12.34% compared to 9.90% for the MSCI Japan Index.

Exchange-traded fund provider Deutsche Asset Management has announced it will change the primary listing venue for three db X-tracker ETFs to the Bats Exchange, a leading electronic stock exchange. The funds are set to move on 9th June and include the Deutsche X-trackers Emerging Markets Bond – Interest Rate Hedged ETF (EMIH), Deutsche X-trackers Investment Grade Bond – Interest Rate Hedged ETF (IGIH), and Deutsche X-trackers High Yield Corporate Bond – Interest Rate Hedged ETF (HYIH) target exposure to the emerging markets, US investment grade, and US high yield fixed income markets, respectively while minimising interest rate risk through short positions in US Treasury futures.

Leading financial data provider Bloomberg has launched the Bloomberg Financial Services Gender-Equality Index, representing companies within the financial services sector that have adopted best-in-class policies promoting gender diversity. The launch is the latest addition to a string of index and investment product launches including exchange-traded funds that promote social equality. Angela Sun, Head of Strategy and Corporate Development at Bloomberg, commented: “Evidence demonstrates that gender-equality policies and practices can affect a company’s financial performance, productivity and ability to retain top talent.”

US-based exchange-traded fund provider First Trust Advisors has launched the First Trust Alternative Absolute Return Strategy ETF (Nasdaq: FAAR), an actively managed ETF that seeks to profit from either long or short positions in select exchange-listed commodity futures contracts. “Absolute return offers the potential to provide long-term total return in a variety of market environments,” said John Gambla, Senior Portfolio Manager for the Alternatives Investment Team at First Trust. “Additionally, the strategy may offer low or no correlation to equities, bonds, real estate and long-only commodities.”

All four smart beta exchange-traded funds from New York-based ETF provider Global X Funds have surpassed their market cap-weighted benchmarks one year after their initial launches. The ETFs which provide core multi-factor (value, size, momentum and volatility) equity exposure to the US, Europe, Japan, and Asia ex-Japan through tracking EDHEC-Risk Institute’s Scientific Beta Indices, all outperformed their benchmarks on both return and risk metrics. Jay Jacobs, Director of Research at Global X, commented: “We fully believe that multi-factor funds are the latest evolution in smart beta investing. The rigorous research put into these strategies, combined with the low fees and increased tax efficiency associated with ETFs, represents an attractive alternative to expensive actively managed mutual funds.”

Global exchange-traded fund provider First Trust has launched a UK-listed smart beta exchange-traded fund targeting US-listed dividend-paying stocks. Listed on the London Stock Exchange, the First Trust US Equity Income UCITS ETF (UINC) tracks the performance of the NASDAQ US High Equity Income Index, a modified value-weighted index designed to objectively select dividend-paying stocks from the NASDAQ US Benchmark Index. The fund maintains a quality tilt by excluding firms with excessive leverage and poor free cash flow ratios.

Vanguard has released a white paper comparing the benefits of mutual funds and ETFs, which finds that intra-day market prices – seen when trading ETFs – reflect valuable information about market conditions. The research entitled “Exchange-traded funds: Clarity amid the clutter” looks at how the historic range of premiums and discounts to the ETF’s net asset value may provide information regarding market conditions for the underlying asset type. The paper also highlights the increasing popularity of ETFs among investors. Not only have European ETF assets under management risen above $500bn, but asset accumulation has maintained strong momentum, growing at an annualised rate of 86.8% in the four years ending 30 September 2015, versus 33.4% for mutual funds.