Invesco, the asset manager behind the PowerShares range of ETFs, is rumoured to be in discussions to acquire part of the investment management business of Guggenheim Investments, including the firm’s ETF issuing arm. The deal, if completed, would mark the second major ETF-related acquisition for Invesco this year following the announcement in April that it would be taking control of Europe-based asset manager Source.

Guggenheim Investments has halved the management fee charged on its $13bn S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (NYSE Arca: RSP), from 0.40% to 0.20% in a bid to position itself as one of the lowest cost providers of smart beta ETF strategies. Douglas Mangini, head of intermediary distribution at Guggenheim, commented: “This significant fee reduction is designed to benefit existing shareholders and acknowledge the increasing use of RSP by institutional and individual investors as a core equity holding.”

Guggenheim Investments has changed the name of the Guggenheim Enhanced Short Duration ETF to the Guggenheim Ultra Short Duration ETF. The actively managed fund, which has over $1.1 billion in assets under management, will keep its ticker symbol (NYSE Arca: GSY). William H. Belden, managing director and head of ETF business development for Guggenheim Investments, said: “GSY can be used for tactical cash positions to deliver potentially greater return than cash as well as liquidity for non-immediate needs.”

Guggenheim has launched a new US equity smart beta ETF that applies a multi-factor approach to select stocks from the S&P 500 Index. The ETF will give exposure to 50 stocks from the underlying index that exhibit strong factor characteristics.

Guggenheim Investments has placed 39 ETFs on the no-transaction-fee ETF platform, FundVest ETF, recently unveiled by BNY Mellon’s Pershing. William H. Belden, managing director and head of ETF product development at Guggenheim Investments, commented: “Guggenheim’s participation in Pershing’s FundVest ETF platform underscores our ongoing commitment to providing investors access to innovative solutions through our distinctive ETF product line.”

Over a third (38%) of asset managers predict that the use of strategic beta strategies is the most likely feature of next-generation US target-date products, according to a survey by global research and consulting firm Cerulli Associates.

Trust Company of America, a provider of integrated technology, custody and management support for Registered Investment Advisors, has launched ETF Custody Advantage, a trading platform designed for exchange-traded funds. Joshua Pace, president and CEO, Trust Company of America, commented: “[Our] ETF platform will ensure investors receive greater levels of diversification through exposure to a wide array of asset classes.”

Guggenheim Investments has placed 16 ETFs on E*TRADE’s commission-free trading platform including the $11.8bn Guggenheim S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (NYSE: RSP). William Belden, Managing Director and Head of ETF Product Development at Guggenheim Investments, commented: “Guggenheim’s participation in E*TRADE’s Commission-Free ETF platform underscores our ongoing commitment to providing investors access to innovative solutions through our distinctive ETF product line. Equal weight strategies represent an alternative to traditional cap-weighted strategies, which have several potential drawbacks.”

Charles Schwab has announced that Schwab ETF OneSource is adding 12 more ETFs to its line up, allowing investors to trade a total of 228 ETFs without paying any commission, enrolment chanrges or early redemption fees. Heather Fischer, Vice President of ETF Platform Management at Charles Schwab, commented: “Schwab ETF OneSource is growing in every way – we’ve added to both our provider and fund ranks in the last year, and continue to offer investors of all sizes the most choice when it comes to commission-free ETFs.”

Following net inflows of $7.2bn during November 2016, assets under management in smart beta equity ETFs listed globally reached a new record high of $497.0bn, according to latest research from ETFGI. Record levels of assets were also reached at the end of November for equity smart beta ETFs/ETPs listed in the United States at $445.0bn and in Canada with $11.0bn.