Hashdex officially launches in Europe

Hashdex officially launches in Europe

A number of exciting new crypto ETPs launched last week including the 21Shares ByteTree gold and Bitcoin ETP.

 

Brazilian crypto asset manager Hashdex, officially launched their first crypto ETP in Europe and in the U.S., and more regulatory scrutiny as Finra launches a probe into “complex” ETF usage by retail investors.

 

Fund Launches and Updates

 

EMEA

21Shares in partnership with ByteTree Asset Management launched the first ever ETP combining Bitcoin and gold. The 21Shares ByteTree BOLD ETP (ticker BOLD) is listed on SIX and has a TER of 1.49%.

Gold has been assigned a higher weighting of 81.5% at launch, while Bitcoin has an 18.5% weighting. Bloomberg

Amundi has switched from tracking a Solactive benchmark to a Bloomberg index.
The Lyxor Green Bond ESG Screened UCITS ETF (XCO2) will go from tracking the Solactive Green ESG Bond EUR USD IG index to the Bloomberg MSCI Global Green Bond 1-10 Year index.
As a result, the ETF will be renamed the Lyxor Global Green Bond 1-10Y UCITS ETF under the same ticker. ETF Stream
CoinShares has launched a physically-backed FTX token ETP seeded with $40m.
The CoinShares FTX Physical FTX Token (CFTT) is listed on the Xetra with a total expense ratio (TER) of 1.50%. ETF Stream
Hashdex has officially launched the Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index Europe ETP (HASH) on the SIX Swiss Exchange.
Hashdex’s latest product tracks the performance of Nasdaq’s Crypto Index Europe (NCIE) which, in turn, tracks the showings of avalanche, bitcoin, cardano, ether, litecoin, polkadot, polygon and solana. TER 1.49% Blockworks
Sprott Asset Management is set to launch a uranium miners ETF via white-label issuer HANetf.
The Sprott Uranium Miners UCITS ETF (URNM) – the European counterpart of the $981m US-listed ETF – will list on the London Stock Exchange. ETF Stream

UBS has launched the UBS (Lux) Fund Solutions.

Bloomberg MSCI US Liquid Corporates 1-5 Year Sustainable UCITS ETF sub-fund aims to track, before expenses, the price and income performance of the Bloomberg MSCI US Liquid Corporates 1-5 Year Sustainable Index (Total Return). TER 20bps ETF World

WisdomTree has launched the WisdomTree Recycling Decarbonisation Ucits ETF (WRCY) on the London Stock Exchange, Börse Xetra and Borsa Italiana.
WRCY meets Article 9 compliance under SFDR and has a total expense ratio of 0.45%. Citywire Selector
 

AMERICAS

In Canada, RBC iShares launched four iShares Megatrends ETFs on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

The news funds are: the iShares Exponential Technologies Index ETF, the iShares Global Clean Energy Index ETF, the iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare Index ETF, and the iShares Cybersecurity and Tech Index ETF.

Expense ratios range from 35bps to 39 bps. Globe Newswire

In the U.S., BlackRock is the most recent firm to intro a crypto ETF with their launch of the Blockchain and Tech ETF (IBLC).Cointelegraph

Invesco expanded its Invesco Commodities ETF Suite with the launch of Invesco Electric Vehicle Metals Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF (EVMT).

EVMT is an actively managed ETF designed to provide economic exposure to the commodities widely used in the production of electric vehicles.PR Newswire

 

ASIA-PACIFIC

The Lion-OCBC Securities Singapore Low Carbon ETF, with AUM of $43m at launch, has been listed on the Singapore Exchange. Fund Selector Asia

Samsung Asset Management Company (SAMC) is expected to list a blockchain ETF on the Hong Kong Exchange during the first half of 2022 and will be a first for Asia.

This comes on the heels of SAMC’s 20% stake in Amplify Holding Company, a U.S. ETF sponsor. Bitcoin.com

 

Fund Flows and Trading Volume

Flows into ESG ETFs amounted to €13bn in the first quarter, less than half of the €27bn that went into them in Q4 2021, Morningstar European data revealed.

Just 30.4% of total money put into ETFs in Europe in Q1 went into ESG funds, down from the 79% record high in Q4 last year.

Flows into thematic ETFs amounted to €0.6bn in Q1 2022, down from €2.1bn in the previous quarter.

Morningstar observes that this was the first quarter since 2019 in which thematic ETFs failed to attract at least €1bn of net inflows.

Investors have also rushed into gold funds and broader commodity plays, with gold exchange traded products offered by Invesco and iShares taking in almost €5bn between them.

European Bond ETF sales fell from €8.4bn in the final quarter of 2021 to €5.1bn in the first three months of this year. FT

 

Noteworthy

While waiting for a spot bitcoin ETF to be approved in the U.S., Grayscale Investments is rumoured to be planning a possible expansion to Europe.

The fund manager, whose $36bn of assets are invested in funds tracking digital tokens, is holding a series of meetings with possible partners, according to Michael Sonnenshein, chief executive.

Sonnenshein told the Financial Times that the company was excited “by the potential to bring what we’ve learned from the US market to places like Europe”. FT Article
Barclays Plc said it has suspended sales of another 30 exchange-traded notes until it is able to fix a paperwork issue with U.S. regulators.
The London-based lender said sales of affected products under the iPath brand have been halted from last Thursday until further notice.
The notes boasted assets of $1.6 billion as of the Wednesday close, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Bloomberg
 

History repeats itself once again, as US regulators are scrutinising the sale of “complex” ETFs to retail investors sending some ETF issuers in a panic.

This is not the first time Finra has asked for feedback on sales practices for “complex products” amid a surge in trading by small investors of some relatively complicated vehicles.

It is not clear on the formal definition as to what Finra means by “complex product” causing a lot of confusion for the industry.

Finra said it was “a product with features that may make it difficult for a retail investor to understand the essential characteristics of the product and its risks”.

Examples of “complex products” potentially include defined-outcome ETFs, cryptocurrency futures ETFs, leveraged and inverse ETFs and volatility and oil-linked ETPs – all of which collectively hold billions of AUM. FT
 

After a launch delay in Australia last week for the first spot crypto ETF, it looks like Toronto-based 3iQ Digital Asset Management could make history by listing Australia’s first cryptocurrency ETF.

According to the Australian Financial Review, the crypto specialist firm quietly lodged disclosure documents with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission late last week. 

In those documents it was revealed plans to quote the 3iQ CoinShares Bitcoin Feeder ETF and 3iQ CoinShares Ether Feeder ETF on the Cboe Australia exchange.

It will be interesting to see which firm actually grabs the coveted “first mover advantage” title. Financial Review
 

Additional reads

 

Industry reacts to IOSCO’s ETF good practice proposals. ETF Stream

Fidelity to offer Digital Asset investment as part of retirement plans. FX Empire