The world’s biggest ETF company appears to delay a number of ETF launches, including its planned currency-hedged Japan fund.
iShares last week revealed in a filing that the launch of its proposed iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF, along with the rollouts of its planned currency-hedged EAFE fund, its currency-hedged Germany ETF, its iShares Core Allocation Funds and its iShares Currency Funds appear to be delayed until sometime early next year.
The three MSCI-indexed currency-hedged equities funds targeting Japan, EAFE countries and Germany will bring iShares into direct competition with an identical lineup of existing products sponsored by Deutsche Bank and a blockbuster Japan product from WisdomTree.
Currency-hedged ETFs have become all the rage in about the past year, as investors, for the first time since the tech bust, are dealing with a strengthening dollar—or a weakening yen or euro. Owning a fund like the blockbuster WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund (DXJ | A-45) means returns haven’t been hurt by a yen that has weakened by about 13 percent this year.
DXJ has hauled in $8.73 billion in fresh assets so far in 2013, and is now an $11.3 billion fund, according to data compiled by IndexUniverse.
In other ETF-related news, today’s regulatory traffic includes the following:
- ALPS has filed paperwork to launch the ALPS Emerging Sector Dividend Dogs ETF, which tracks the S-Network Emerging Sector Dividend Dogs Index to give investors a means of tracking the overall performance of the highest dividend paying stocks. The fund charges 0.60 percent, or $60 for every $10,000 invested, per year.
- Emerging Global Advisors has filed for exemptive relief with regulators seeking permission to launch self-indexing funds, long/short funds and 130/30 funds. The 130/30 funds work by investing 100 percent long and then shorting 30 percent of the portfolio and using proceeds from those shorts to buy an additional 30 percent long exposure.
- Global X has filed paperwork detailing two ETFs to complement its Global X GURU ETF (GURU | C-48). The firm has proposed to offer the Global X Guru Small Cap Index ETF and the Global X Guru International Index ETF, which will both employ 13F filings used by hedge fund managers to bet on their respective markets.
- IndexIQ has put into motion paperwork detailing a slate of bull and bear funds. The funds and their respective tickers and fees include:
- IQ Long/Short Alpha ETF (HEDG), 1.23 percent, or $123 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bear U.S. Large Cap ETF (BEAR) 1.39 percent, or $139 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bear U.S. Small Cap ETF (BRSC) 1.67 percent, or $167 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bear International ETF (BRIM) 1.71 percent, or $171 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bear Emerging Markets ETF (BREM) 1.69 percent, or $169 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bull U.S. Large Cap ETF (BULL) 1.13 percent, or $113 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bull U.S. Small Cap ETF (BLSC) 1.24 percent, or $124 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bull International ETF (BLIM) 1.48 percent, or $148 for every $10,000 invested
- IQ Bull Emerging Markets ETF (BLEM) 1.59 percent, or $159 for every $10,000 invested
- Also, Arrow Investment Advisors is seeking permission from regulators to launch self-indexed funds, long/short funds and 130/30 funds.
