ETF Week: Cryptos Halted, Mortgage Fund Debuts

It was a week full of launches, with 11 ETFs debuting from Sept. 10 through Sept. 14, though two Swedish cryptocurrency ETNs available to U.S. investors were suspended from trading until Sept. 20 by the SEC.

Below is a roundup of the key events in the ETF space during the week beginning Sept. 10, 2018:

SEC Suspends Trading In Crypto ETPs
Concerns about confusion among market participants prompted the SEC to suspend trading in the Bitcoin Tracker One (CXBTF) and the Ether Tracker One (CETHF), two Swedish-listed products that track the prices of their respective cryptocurrencies. The trading freeze is set to be lifted on Sept. 20.

Janus Henderson Debuts Only Active MBS ETF
Janus Henderson has expanded the opportunity set of investment choices by launching the only actively managed MBS ETF, the Janus Henderson Mortgage-Backed Securities ETF (JMBS). The new fund comes with an expense ratio of 0.35%. There are currently five passively managed MBS ETFs trading on U.S. markets, the largest of which is the $12 billion iShares MBS ETF (MBB), which comes with an expense ratio of 0.09%.

Invesco Rolls Out ‘Strategic’ Fund Family
On Wednesday, Invesco unveiled a lineup of five smart-beta ETFs targeting the quality factor across the U.S., developed markets and emerging markets. Two of the funds cover smaller-sized companies.

American Century Launches ETF Trio
American Century Investments debuted a trio of ETFs with different objectives. The trio included a quality dividend fund focusing on non-U.S. markets, while another targets quality growth stocks in the U.S. The third fund is an actively managed municipal bond ETF.

New Cambria ETF Offers One-Stop Shopping
Cambria Funds rolled out the Cambria Trinity ETF (TRTY), a fund investing primarily in other ETFs representing a wide range of asset classes. The index-based portfolio combines a buy-and-hold approach with trend-following strategies, seeking to capture the performance value, momentum and trend-following factors, and offering exposure to global equities, global fixed income and global real assets.

Innovator Debuts ‘Breakout Stock’ Fund
Innovator Capital Management launched an ETF on Thursday that looks to target companies poised to break out of their trading ranges. The Innovator IBD Breakout Opportunities ETF (BOUT) focuses on companies with strong fundamental indicators and relies on a chart pattern recognition algorithm to identify the ones most likely to break out.

Deutsche Enters Socially Responsible Space
At the end of last week, Deutsche Bank’s U.S. ETF arm unveiled an ETF tracking an index derived from the MSCI EAFE Index, but with an ESG overlay. The methodology for the Xtrackers MSCI EAFE ESG Leaders Equity ETF (EASG) relies on MSCI’s ESG research in the areas of ESG ratings, ESG controversies and business involvement to evaluate potential constituents.

Contact Heather Bell at [email protected]