Are there too many funds now available?

About 4,300 funds and ETFs alone have been launched in the US in the past decade, bringing the total to more than 10,000. In China the number of funds has doubled, reaching 10,576 at the end of last year. 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?

Should India be on everyone’s radar?

Whilst many U.S. and European asset managers have pinned their long-term growth prospects in Asia on the Chinese market, is it India where the real opportunity lies?

INDUCEMENTS: TO BAN OR NOT TO BAN?

34% believe that inducement payments should be banned citing concerns that this could negatively impact products and advice offered to their clients, according to a CFA study.

Australia: the forgotten ETF market

The Australian ETF industry is often overlooked, at least compared to the coverage in the US or Europe.
However, January started with a bang bringing the Australia ETF industry to a record $138.5 billion in AUM across approximately 240 ASX-listed ETFs.

Is the ETF market about to double in size?

JP Morgan’s Bryon Lake says the ETF market in the US is about to double in size in the next 5 years. If that is going to happen in the US, can we assume Europe and Asia might follow suit? Maybe not as the same pace, but the direction of travel is clear for sure.

Morgan Stanley crashes the ESG ETF party

Another juggernaut manager hits the ETF playing field with the announcement from Morgan Stanley that they are to launch a suite of six new ETFs – four indexed ESG strategies and two active ESG strategies across a range of asset classes.

Is Europe about to ban inducement fees?

Retrocession or inducement fees are the cancer of fund distribution in Europe (and Asia). So we were very interested to see the comments from the European Commissioner for Financial Stability, who said they are considering to ban them as part of its retail investment strategy.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPY

30 years ago marked the real start of the ETF industry with the launch of SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), the first U.S.-listed and still-largest ETF. Little did those involved realise at the time that its launch would spark a revolution in investing, a theme that continues to this day.