Highland Capital Partners is to implement changes to the Highland/iBoxx Senior Loan ETF (SNLN US) following a review of the underlying reference benchmark by index provider IHS Markit. Taylor Ridgely, co-portfolio manager, commented, “For a passively managed fund, index construction and methodology are key. Enhancing some of the structural features of the index results in exposure that better reflects the realities of the underlying loan market.”

Global ETF lendable assets have increased by $58 billion in 2018 compared with 2017’s average, according to research by IHS Markit. The report’s author, Sam Pierson, Director of Securities Finance at IHS Markit, notes that the growth in ETF lendable assets reflects the growing use of ETFs by institutional investors who are increasingly being drawn to the investment vehicle due to operational ease of use.

By Stephen Laipply, Head of US iShares Fixed Income Strategy at BlackRock.

A trio of 2018 milestones show that the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD US) is now an indispensable investment tool.

The Index Industry Association has published the results of its second annual global index survey. The results suggest that there are 3.727 million indices globally, an increase of approximately 438,000 indices since the survey was first conducted in June 2017. Fixed income saw the largest growth. Rick Redding, the CEO of IIA, said, “We are seeing a strong investment in research and development by index providers into building out their fixed income capabilities to offer to clients.”

IHS Markit has announced the launch of the iBoxx ChinaBond Indices, a new family of fixed income indices tracking segments of the onshore Chinese bond market. The first indices to be unveiled are the iBoxx ChinaBond Government & Policy Banks Bond Indices. “We are confident that we are offering the strongest benchmarks for the onshore Chinese bond market. Bringing our iBoxx methodologies and independence to China will help mutual funds, ETFs and international investors access this large and growing market,” said Shane Akeroyd, President of IHS Markit Asia.

Tabula Investment Management has launched its first ETF – the Tabula European Performance Credit UCITS ETF (TCEP LN) – on London Stock Exchange, providing exposure to European credit through an index tracking the credit default swap (CDS) market. The fund aims to provide a competitive yield without the direct interest rate risk inherent in traditional corporate bond indices. Michael John Lytle, CEO of Tabula, said the new ETF offers “precise credit exposure and the ability to increase or decrease it whenever you want to”.

Nikko Asset Management has launched the Nikko AM SGD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (NIKIGCB SP) on Singapore Exchange The fund has garnered strong investor interest, accumulating almost S$83 million ($60m) in assets during its subscription period.

WisdomTree has introduced a medley of currency-hedged share classes on the London Stock Exchange, Xetra and Borsa Italiana for its WisdomTree AT1 CoCo Bond UCITS ETF. The new share classes offer a degree of exchange rate risk mitigation between the currency denomination of fund’s underlying holdings and the base currency of the share class – US dollars, pound sterling, or euros.

Nikko Asset Management is set to launch its fourth ETF in Singapore with the listing of the Nikko AM SGD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (NIKIGCB SP) on SGX next month. The ETF will become the first Singapore dollar-denominated corporate bond ETF to list on the exchange and will aim to replicate the performance of the iBoxx SGD Non-Sovereigns Large Cap Investment Grade Index.

Invesco has cross-listed the Invesco AT1 Capital Bond UCITS ETF and its euro-hedged share class on Borsa Italiana under the tickers AT1 IM and XAT1 IM respectively.