Vanguard launched their first ETF last week in nearly 2 years. Quite staggering when you compare them to their peers who are like sausage factories churning out product at a constant rate.

To give some context, about 4,300 funds and exchange traded funds alone have been launched in the US in the past decade, according to Refinitiv, bringing the total to more than 10,000. But that’s nothing compared to China where in just over four years, the number of funds (Mutual funds + ETFs) has doubled, reaching 10,576 at the end of last year. That’s a lot of funds.

Judging by the pace of products that are being launched, have we reached a saturation point? Do investors really need more funds to achieve their objectives? We don’t think so.

 

Fund Launches and Updates

 

EMEA

 

JP Morgan Asset Management has broadened its ESG ETF lineup with the launch of an actively-managed bond ETF.

The JPMorgan Green Social Sustainable Bond Ucits ETF (JGRN) is listed on the Euronext Dublin, London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Boerse, Borsa Italiana and the Six Swiss Exchange with a TER of 0.32%. funds-europe

Vinter, the Crypto Index Provider, announces new partnership with Bitcoin Capital AG, the subsidiary of Swiss cryptocurrency Investment Manager FiCAS. coinspeaker

LGIM is intensifying its push into the German retail market as it eyes the launch of a co-branded multi-factor ETF with investment firm Gerd Kommer Invest. etfstream

BNP Paribas Asset Management  has launched two fixed income ESG ETFs tracking the euro aggregate and short duration government bonds.

The BNP Paribas Easy Euro Aggregate Bond SRI Fossil Free UCITS ETF (BJLF) and the BNP Paribas Easy JPM ESG EMU Government Bond IG 1-3Y UCITS ETF (BJLH) are listed on the Euronext Paris, Borsa Italiana and the Deutsche Boerse with TERs of 0.15%. etfstrategy

Franklin Templeton has announced the launch of its new Franklin MSCI Emerging Markets Paris Aligned Climate UCITS ETF within its Franklin Templeton ETF range.

The new fund will list on the Deutsche Börse Xetra, Borsa Italiana and LSE with a TER of 0.18%. etfexpress

 

AMERICAS

 

Goldman Sachs Asset Management has launched the Goldman Sachs Community Municipal Bond ETF (NYSE Arca: GMUN) with a TER of 0.25%. etftrends

Vanguard launches its first ETF in nearly two years. The Vanguard Short-Term Tax-Exempt Bond ETF (ticker VTES) launches with a TER OF 0.07%. bloomberg

VanEck spot bitcoin ETF application has been rejected by the US SEC for third time. reuters

Franklin Templeton to offer new Multi-Asset ETF focused on Income. The Franklin Income Focus ETF (NYSE Arca: INCM). businesswire

JP Morgan Asset Management has launched a new actively managed ETF providing exposure to value-oriented equities within the US small-cap segment.

The JPMorgan Active Small Cap Value ETF (JPSV US) has been listed on NYSE Arca with an expense ratio of 0.74%. etfstrategy

Alpha Architect has launched a new actively managed ETF designed to earn positive returns during significant downturns in US large-cap equities. The Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF (CAOS US) has been listed on Cboe BZX Exchange with an expense ratio of 0.63%. etfstrategy

Flows

Investors pull near record sums from corporate bond ETFs.

Investment grade and high-yield funds had combined outflows of $8.3bn in February. ft.com

€8 billion inflows into Europe-domiciled ETFs in February, down from €18 billion the previous month.

Equity ETFs accounted for 82% of inflows, while fixed income was only 2% (down from 50% the previous month).

Top 2 ETPs by flows were commodity-focused: Amundi Bloomberg Equal-weight Commodity ex-Agriculture UCITS ETF and the WisdomTree Copper ETC  each taking in around €800 million.

Biggest outflow was from iShares Core EUR Corp Bond UCITS ETF shedding over €1 billion or almost 1% of AuM. Source: Bloomberg

 

Gold ETFs globally registered their tenth consecutive month of net outflows in February, shedding an additional $1.7 billion (-34 tonnes; -1.0% AUM) during the month.

The consistent outflows represent the longest streak of depressed demand for gold ETFs since January 2014, according to data from the World Gold Council. etfstrategy

 

CLICK to listen stories from inspiring leaders. This week we speak with Stephanie Pierce, CEO, BNY Mellon ETFs based in Boston.

In this conversation we hear Stephanie talk about wanting to be an engineer when she was a kid, why it’s best to focus on a specific area and become an expert early in your career, how discipline is key to managing work/life balance and how reading funny greeting cards is something of a hidden obsession.

 

Noteworthy

Grayscale appears to win opening salvo in Bitcoin ETF case vs SEC as judges express skepticism of SEC arguments in Grayscale Bitcoin ETF Hearing. blockworks

 

Additional reads

A recent report from consultant Cap Gemini has suggested that HNWs are seeking to diversify their portfolios by turning to digital assets – anything from cryptocurrencies to indirect crypto investing through ETFs and NFTs.

They also state that 70% of HNWs are invested in digital assests. capgemini

 

From behind the Desk

Never put too much trust in friends – chapter 2 of Robert Greene’s famous book “The 48 Laws of Power”.

This got us thinking about a recent podcast guest I had who said the friends he thought would help him most in his business turned out to be the least helpful and those he least expected turned out to be the most helpful. This is something we can definitely relate to. People can be very strange creatures; you never quite know how they will behave or react to things.

So always have an open mind and never close the door on anyone, as you never know when you might need them.