“Passives have not become too big but they are too big to ignore”, great words by Arnaud Llinas of Amundi to kick off an ETF Stream event. 

A timely quote given the Financial Times summary of behemoth asset managers who have recently entered the ETF arena.

Fund Launches and Updates

EMEA

21Shares has launched the world’s first US dollar yield ETP collateralised by bitcoin and ethereum. The 21Shares USD Yield ETP (USDY) is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange with a total expense ratio of 0.30%. ETF Stream

BlackRock has listed the iShares € Corp Bond ex-Financials UCITS ETF and the iShares € Corp Bond SRI 0-3yr ESG UCITS ETF on Xetra and via Börse Frankfurt. ETF Express

Following changes implemented by MSCI, DWS has seen the ESG screens tighten on the following ETFs: £3.6bn Xtrackers MSCI USA ESG UCITS ETF (XZMU), the £2bn MSCI World ESG UCITS ETF (XZW0), the £1.2bn Xtrackers MSCI Japan ESG UCITS ETF (XZMJ), the £621m Xtrackers MSCI Europe ESG UCITS ETF (XZEU), the Xtrackers MSCI Emerging Markets ESG UCITS ETF (XZEM) and the £27m Xtrackers EMU ESG UCITS ETF (XZEZ). ETF Stream

Krane Funds Advisors, LLC launched the KraneShares Electric Vehicles & Future Mobility ESG Screened UCITS ETF (Ticker: KARS). KARS is listed on the London Stock Exchange with a TER of 0.72%. ETF World

Lyxor ETF listed the Lyxor Global Green Bond 1-10Y (DR) UCITS ETF – Monthly Hedged to GBP – Dist and the Lyxor Global Green Bond 1-10Y (DR) UCITS ETF – Monthly Hedged to USD – Acc, on the London Stock Exchange. Both ETFs have TERs of 0.15%. ETF World

AMERICAS

BondBloxx Investment Management, launched in October of 2021 to provide precision ETF exposures for fixed income investors, announced the launch of the following three new ETFs which begin trading last week on NYSE Arca. PR Newswire

JP Morgan Asset Management has converted a $1.1 billion mutual fund focused on the US property market into an actively managed fully transparent ETF. The JPMorgan Realty Income ETF (JPRE US) has been listed on NYSE Arca with an expense ratio of 0.50%. ETF Strategy

ASIA-PACIFIC

In Australia, Cosmos Asset management has launched the Cosmos Purpose Ethereum Access (CPET) ETF on Cboe Australia. Financial Standard

Noteworthy

The Financial Times recently published a good summary of the largest asset managers who have joined the ETF ranks – all a reminder that the pool is too big to ignore.

Among them Neuberger Berman with their recent launch of 3 ETFs, Morgan Stanley, SEI and Matthews Asia — all which have recently launched or signalled their intention to unveil their debut ETFs.

Those companies follow other recent heavyweight converts, such as T Rowe Price, Dimensional Fund Advisors and Federated Hermes, in rushing to roll out ETFs as the products rapidly gain market share at the expense of traditional mutual funds. Financial Times

UK financial services firm Hargreaves Lansdown’s research team has expanded to cover ETFs as well as trackers funds.

ETF research will include analysis on ESG integration, process and performance. Responding to client demand, industry developments, as well as market-leading insights on actively managed funds and investment trusts, the newly expanded coverage team will include Alex Watkins and Kate Marshall who will lead the ETF research. ETF Express

China will allow qualified foreign institutional investors (QFII), which can include central banks, sovereign funds, commercial banks and pension funds, to invest in bonds on the exchange market, the People’s Bank of China said recently.

The move would “help expand capital inflows to China.” In a separate move that could also boost financial flows to China, the CSRC, the country’s top securities regulator, and Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission agreed to include ETFs in a program connecting stock markets in the Chinese mainland. PI Online

It’s been a volatile year for global markets, but U.S based Pacer ETFs has seen an incredible amount of inflows in the past year particularly in their Pacer Cash Cows Index® ETF Series.

The series of ETFs has seen inflows of $5.9 billion in assets across the series between May 24, 2021 and May 23, 2022. Most notably, the Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF (COWZ) has now reached $5.5 billion in assets, becoming the firm’s largest fund based on AUM. Businesswire

Additional reads

Newest BBH Survey – 2022 greater China ETF investor survey: Thematic demand accelerates among greater China investors as ETF adoption ramps. BBH

ETF Wrap: Five lessons from industry thought leaders at EEU22. ETF Stream

Short-sellers target biggest US Bitcoin ETF as drawdown deepens. Bloomberg

The Securities and Exchange Board of India have issued new ETF guidelines given the sharp rise in retail investor interest. Financial Times

Sector ETFs are drained of nearly $12 billion in May. Bloomberg