Franklin Templeton has unveiled its first fully passive ETFs, including 14 single-country and two regional funds. The ETFs, which track market cap-weighted indices designed by FTSE Russell, are scheduled to be listed on NYSE Arca on 6 November 2017.
Patrick O’Connor, global head of ETFs at Franklin Templeton Investments.
The ETFs’ expense ratios are among the lowest in the industry for their respective categories. The ETFs that offer exposure to developed countries will have expense ratios of 0.09%, while those targeting emerging markets will cost 0.19%.
Patrick O’Connor, global head of ETFs for Franklin Templeton Investments, said: “Our goal is to provide investors with the flexibility to construct diversified portfolios across active, smart beta and passive ETF strategies. Our new suite of passive ETFs will provide a cost-effective way to access beta solutions, further rounding out our offerings for US investors.”
Under its LibertyShares brand, the firm currently offers an actively managed and smart beta ETFs, and has over $900 million in ETF assets under management (as of 30 September 2017).
Jenny Johnson, president and COO of Franklin Resources, commented: “We continue to see significant interest from our clients in passive and smart beta strategies that complement our active fund management capabilities. Franklin Templeton remains committed to offering a comprehensive suite of investment strategies and solutions that will provide clients with broad access across investment styles, asset classes and geographies. This is an exciting new chapter in our 70-year history as we evolve our capabilities to address our clients’ needs in the ETF arena.”
The ETFs and their total expense ratios (TERs) are listed below:
Franklin FTSE Australia ETF (FLAU). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Canada ETF (FLCA). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Europe ETF (FLEE). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Europe Hedged ETF (FLEH). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE France ETF (FLFR). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Germany ETF (FLGR). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Hong Kong ETF (FLHK). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Italy ETF (FLIY). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Japan ETF (FLJP). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE Japan Hedged ETF (FLJH). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE United Kingdom ETF (FLGB). TER – 0.09%
Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF (FLKR). TER – 0.09%.
Franklin FTSE Brazil ETF (FLBR). TER – 0.19%
Franklin FTSE China ETF (FLCH). TER – 0.19%
Franklin FTSE Mexico ETF (FLMX). TER – 0.19%
Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF (FLTW). TER – 0.19%
Johnson and O’Connor will join a group of Franklin Templeton Investments executives in ringing the NYSE opening bell on 6 November 2017 to mark the commencement of trading of this suite of passive ETFs.