ETF Week: Zero-Fee Funds Debut

The past week was a whirlwind of activity, with nine launches and the news that Precidian’s long-awaited nontransparent active ETF structure had been approved by the SEC. Launches for the week included a family of five leveraged and inverse ETNs targeting a narrow-based oil company index, two ETFs with waivers that bring their expense ratios to zero and the first ETF focused on space.

Below is a roundup of the key events in the ETF industry for the week ended April 12, 2019:

SoFi Launches Zero-Expense-Ratio ETFs
Personal finance company SoFi entered the ETF space with the launch of two growth-oriented ETFs targeting the large- and midcap segments of the U.S. market. The two funds have expense ratios of 0.19% each, but they also have fee waivers that bring that fee down to zero through June 30, 2020. (Read: Newcomer Rolls Out Zero-Fee ETFs)

First Space Fund Takes Off
Procure ETFs, co-founded by Andrew Chanin and Bob Tull, just launched its first fund, the first ETF to cover companies that derive significant revenues from business activities related to space, such as satellite-based technologies and space travel. (Read: 1st Space ETF Lifts Off)

REX Debuts Oil MicroSectors ETNs
REX Shares partnered with the Bank of Montreal to launch a family of five leveraged and inverse ETNs focused on the “big oil” space. The ETNs are all tied to the same narrow-based 10-stock index. REX has previously launched two other sets of MicroSectors ETNs targeting FAANG-related securities and big banks. (Read: New Targeted Sector ETNs Debut)

Nontransparent ETFs Coming
After almost a decade’s worth of anticipation, Precidian’s proposed structure for nontransparent actively managed ETFs has been approved by the SEC. The structure has already been licensed by nine major financial companies. (Read: Nontransparent ETF Structure Approved) 

Global X Debuts Genomics Fund
An ETF offering pure-play exposure to the biotechnology and genomics space made its debut from Global X this week. The fund tracks an index of 40 holdings that are partially selected using a natural language processing algorithm. (Read: Genomics & Biotech ETF Launches)

iShares Adds Target-Maturity Muni ETF
BlackRock’s iShares arm has added another ETF to its iBonds family of target-maturity bond funds. The firm is in the middle of a major expansion of its iBonds line of ETFs that focuses on the municipal bond space. As of the most recent launch, the lineup now covers ETFs of bonds maturing in the years 2019 through 2027. (Read: iShares Continues iBonds ETF Expansion)

Contact Heather Bell at [email protected]