Invesco has launched the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Index ETF (EQL CN) on Toronto Stock Exchange. The fund becomes Canada’s first ETF to provide equally weighted exposure to the companies that make up the S&P 500.
ETFs deliver the versatility that European institutional investors want in the current fast-changing global market environment, according to a recent study by Greenwich Associates. “After multiple years of regular use, European institutions have found ETFs to be simple, versatile and cost-effective tools, and they are ramping up their investments at a rapid clip,” says Greenwich Associates managing director, Andrew McCollum.
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.
BlackRock has launched the iShares Inflation Hedged Corporate Bond ETF (LQDI US) on Cboe ETF Marketplace. The fund seeks to mitigate unexpected inflation risk – inflation going up beyond market expectations – in a portfolio composed of US dollar-denominated, investment grade corporate bonds. This means that Inflation risk will be reduced, but investors will still be exposed to interest rate risk and credit risk.
The first ETF to target the ETF industry – the ETF Industry Exposure & Financial Services ETF (TETF US) – has delivered a strong return of 36.0% in the first year since its launch on 30 April 2017. Mike Venuto, CIO of Toroso Investments, commented, “The key facets of the ETF structure – transparency, liquidity, lower costs – are by now well understood, but investors are just now catching onto the fact that as the ETF has gone mainstream, the ETF industry itself has emerged as a compelling investment idea.”
The first ETF to use artificial intelligence (AI) to identify and invest in blockchain innovators and adopters has launched on NYSE Arca. The Innovation Shares NextGen Protocol ETF (KOIN US) provides investors with a thematic play on developments in blockchain technology. “Blockchain is a highly innovative technology, and we’re applying an innovative approach to identifying the stocks leveraged to the theme,” said Matt Markiewicz, managing director with Innovation Shares.
Horizons ETFs has launched the Horizons Robotics and Automation Index ETF (ROBO CN), the first ETF listed in Canada to offer thematic exposure to the robotics and automation industry. Steve Hawkins, president and Co-CEO of Horizons ETFs, said: “This could be the largest untapped investment opportunity for Canadian investors.”
European ETF industry veterans Hector McNeil and Nik Bienkowksi have announced the launch of HANetf, Europe’s first independent “white label” UCITS ETF platform. The platform, which is not linked to any existing issuer, will provide third-party asset managers from around the world with the infrastructure to build and launch ETFs into Europe without having to establish their own full-service business. The pair aim to disrupt the market by lowering the barriers to entry for prospective new ETF issuers.
Toroso Investments and white label ETF platform Exchange Traded Concepts, have launched the ETF Industry Exposure & Financial Services ETF (NYSE: TETF), providing access to companies driving growth in the ETF industry. Mike Venuto, CIO of Toroso Investments, commented: “[The ETF] is aimed toward capturing not only the established leaders in each area, but also those firms that might be new to the space but are bringing exciting approaches that could resonate with investors and drive further growth of the industry itself.”
The London Stock Exchange Group has confirmed that it is in talks with Deutsche Boerse over a potential merger of equals of the two businesses. Should the merger go ahead, both companies will continue to operate under their current brand names, but it would see the LSE holding 45.6% of the merged group and Deutsche Boerse the remaining 54.4%. If the two exchanges were to merge it would see two of the biggest platforms for exchange-traded fund trading in Europe coming together. Germany, Italy and UK currently have the largest and most actively traded ETF markets in Europe. The LSEG already owns Borsa Italiana. The union would also bring together two major index groups, FTSE Russell and STOXX.