Franklin Templeton Investments has added three new emerging markets funds – tracking Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and Latin America – to its line-up of passively managed single country and regional ETFs in the US.
Franklin Templeton has expanded its suite of ETFs in Europe with the launch of the Franklin LibertyQ AC Asia Ex Japan UCITS ETF. The fund has been listed on Deutsche Börse with cross listings planned for the LSE, Borsa Italiana and SIX Swiss Exchange. Caroline Baron, Head of ETF Sales EMEA at Franklin Templeton, said, “We are pleased to announce the expansion of our smart beta ETF range—this time with a new transparent, rule-based multi-factor Asian ETF, built on our active insights in the market and offered at a competitive fee of 40bps.”
Franklin Templeton has added the Franklin LibertyQ European Equity UCITS ETF to its line-up of European listed ETFs. The new ETF provides equity exposure to developed market European companies selected and weighted using a multi-factor smart beta approach. Caroline Baron, Head of ETF Sales EMEA at Franklin Templeton, commented: “We continue to build momentum and develop our suite of LibertyQ funds for the European market. For our line-up of multi-factor strategies, we target high quality companies that are attractively valued using momentum to identify investment trends and avoid value traps. We also use low volatility to help provide a defensive measure against downturns.”
JP Morgan has unveiled two more equity ETFs as part of its ‘BetaBuilders’ range of funds – low cost, passively managed ETFs marketed as portfolio building blocks. The new additions provide broad exposure to the equity markets of Canada and developed Asia Pacific excluding Japan.
By Jason Xavier, head of EMEA ETF capital markets at Franklin Templeton Investments.
Opportunities to invest nimbly in fixed income securities have traditionally been limited for all but large, sophisticated investors. The emergence of fixed income ETFs has changed that and brought some much-longed-for democracy to the fixed income arena.
Seven issuers were active on London Stock Exchange in June, listing seventeen new ETFs or ETF share classes, bringing the total number of new listings (including ETPs) to 188 year-to-date. Lida Eslami, Head of London ETP Business Development, London Stock Exchange, commented: “We continue to see growing demand for ETPs both in terms of issuance and volumes traded in the first half of the year.”
It is often said that criticism is the price of success. This certainly appears to be the case with ETFs, which have enjoyed tremendous growth over the past few years but are the recipient of frequent criticism. Criticism has come from various quarters, but there is some unease that it often comes from individuals outside the industry who perhaps do not grasp all the technical intricacies of the product or from parties whose vested interests may be under threat. Industry experts from HANetf, Franklin Templeton, Lyxor and State Street Global Advisers scrutinise the latest allegations.
Franklin Templeton is set to launch two actively managed fixed income ETFs in Europe. The funds, which will initially list on the Deutsche Börse and LSE, are the Franklin Liberty Euro Short Maturity UCITS ETF and the Franklin Liberty USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond UCITS ETF. David Zahn, head of European fixed income at Franklin Templeton Investments, said, “As active managers, we have the flexibility to pursue investment opportunities that are beyond the fund’s benchmark index to help identify the most attractive securities to invest in.”
Franklin Templeton Investments has launched three new actively managed fixed income ETFs on Cboe BZX Exchange – the Franklin Liberty Senior Loan ETF (FLBL US), Franklin Liberty High Yield Corporate ETF (FLHY US) and Franklin International Aggregate Bond ETF (FLIA US). Patrick O’Connor, head of global ETFs, Franklin Templeton, said, “As investors look to get more income out of their fixed income allocation, these new ETFs enable them to access additional fixed income sectors globally in a targeted way.”
Franklin Templeton has extended its reach into Europe by cross-listing five smart beta ETFs on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The ETFs, targeting global, US, or European equities, are part of the Franklin Liberty Shares range and consist of multi-factor and quality income strategies. They are already available on the London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Börse and Borsa Italiana.