The news that the EU Commission has toned down on its calls for an inducement ban in Europe hardly came as a shock to us.

There are too many vested parties operating in the market to make such a ban likely, unfortunately, and by that, we mean the traditional asset management space. We are sure the EU Commissioner quickly found that out after her first speech on the topic.

Is that a disappointment to the ETF market? Yes of course, as it gives an unfair advantage to mutual funds.

Unfortunately for the end investor they also lose out as they are being mis-sold products purely on the basis of commission. It’s hard to fight the machine especially when there is money involved.

Some things never change unfortunately.

 

Fund Launches and Updates

 

EMEA

 

European white-label ETF platform Algo-Chain has launched an ETF Portfolio AI Toolkit.

The offering will be available as an online subscription for investment managers and financial advisers, offering them the ability to design and manage ETF strategies with the help of automation and machine learning. Investmentweek

DWS has expanded its Paris-Aligned Benchmark (PAB) climate range with an ETF capturing Scandinavian equities.

The Xtrackers Nordic Net Zero Pathway Paris Aligned UCITS ETF is listed on the Deutsche Boerse with a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.15%. etfstream

DWS has also launched an ETF capturing the bond issuance of governments in emerging markets (EMs) denominated in their respective local currencies.

The Xtrackers J.P. Morgan EM Local Government Bond UCITS ETF (XEML) is listed on the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse with a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.25%. etfstream

Sweden approves its first multi-asset ETP on Nasdaq Stockholm.

The ETP tracks Virtune Vinter Crypto Top 10 Index (VTOP10) built by the nation’s BMR index provider Vinter. Cityam

 

AMERICAS

 

A new ETF offering investors pure-play exposure to tanker shipping futures launched on the New York Stock Exchange today.

The ETF, known as the Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF (NYSE Arca: BWET), is a collaboration between Breakwave Advisors and ETF Managers Group LLC (ETFMG®).

It is the first of its kind to grant long exposure to the crude oil tanker shipping sector via a collection of near-dated futures contracts based on indices that gauge the expense of crude oil transportation. gcaptain

USCF has launched the USCF Energy Commodity Strategy Absolute Return Fund (USE).

USE seeks long-term total return by using a proprietary methodology to invest in and allocate among energy-related derivative instruments based upon oil, petroleum, and natural gas, as well as other energy-related derivative instruments. USE is an actively managed exchange traded fund. yahoo

Pacer ETFs has expanded its Cash Cows ETF Series with the launch of the Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETF (Nasdaq: CAFG).

CAFG takes a growth-oriented approach for small-cap exposure designed to supplement the free cash flow-focused Cash Cows ETF suite. etftrends

 

ASIA-PACIFIC

 

Malaysian bourse offers free international trips to attract local ETF investors.

Malaysia’s ETF market has suffered low investor demand since its inception 17 years ago due to lack of distributors and limited knowledge among retail investors. The give-away is eligible to retail investors who invest in one or multiple ETFs. ignitesasia

Flows

 

ETF trade volume collapses in the month of April. Trading volume for U.S.-based exchange traded funds dropped in April to its lowest level in more than two and a half years.

Exchange traded funds in April saw $2.1T worth of shares traded for the month, which was essentially half of what was seen in March. This also marked the lowest volume levels since August of 2020, according to Bloomberg data. seekingalpha

Fineqia International analysis of global Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) with digital currencies as underlying assets, revealed the total Assets Under Management (AUM) increased by 66%, representing a 29% rise in their value vis-à-vis the broader digital asset market, which grew 51% in the four months this calendar year. yahoo

 

A podcast series focused on exploring the career journey of industry leaders within the ETF and Digital Assets space. Get to hear their personal story and be inspired.

This week hear from Joanna Gallegos, COO and co-founder at Bondbloxx.

CLICK to listen to her talk about how she got her start in ETFs, why focusing on creating new relationships should be part of everyone’s work week, why conducting an audit of yourself is so important for self awareness and why reading romance novels is one of her favourite hobbies.

 

Noteworthy

 

The use of ETFs is rising sharply in Italy, marking a change in the balance of power between manufacturers and cost-conscious selectors.

The average allocation to ETFs by Italian fund selectors has grown to 31 per cent in 2022 from 23 per cent in 2021, according to Broadridge. igniteseurope

The European Commission has been accused of bowing to pressure from the financial services industry and member states after toning down its support for a full ban on inducements.

Mairead McGuinness, European commissioner for financial services, announced last Thursday that Brussels would look “at tightening the conditions under which inducements are allowed” rather than a full ban. igniteseurope

 

Additional reads

 

UK retail share traders are increasingly choosing to invest in ETFs and funds instead of trading individual stocks, according to a recent study by ETP provider GraniteShares. funds-europe

New ETF platform aims at institutions and hedge funds. Tema ETFs to focus on risk management-optimised active vehicles and helping hedge funds create ETFs.

Tema has financial backing from luminaries including Martin Gilbert, the former chief executive of Aberdeen Asset Management, Michael Spencer, founder of interdealer broker ICAP; Jonathan Rubinstein, former co-chief executive of Bridgewater Associates, the world’s largest hedge fund manager. ft.com

 

From Behind the Desk

 

We really scratch our head at those firms who insist everyone return to the office and who ridicule the idea of remote working as having a negative impact on productivity.

Talk about living in the dark ages.

With the tools we have now, remote working is more achievable than ever and if you mistrust your employees then maybe you have the wrong employees in the first place.

People like the idea of having the choice, the sense of freedom is a basic human need. By taking that away from them you are basically shitting on their head.