ETF Closures Outstrip Launches

Pleny of curveballs for investors and issuers in 2020.

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Reviewed by: Heather Bell
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Edited by: Heather Bell

Closures were off to a strong start in 2020 after Invesco shut down more than 40 ETFs, but things got really crazy in March when global markets collapsed. We currently stand at nearly 100 ETF closures before we are even halfway through 2020.

Launches, in contrast, are closing in on 60. Such a situation, with launches trailing far behind closures, is unprecedented.

What is remarkable about the list of closures is the fact that 32 of the ETFs that closed this year are leveraged and inverse funds, and all of those shuttered in March, when wild market swings were magnified by the 3x and 2x exposures.

Fully half of the affected products are ETNs, and a quarter are directly related to the energy industry, which has been particularly hard hit.

Another good chunk of the completed closures (23) year to date were ETFs targeting international equities.

Among the launches, the majority (33) target U.S. equities, while 31, or more than half, are actively managed. Only one of those nearly 60 ETFs offers geared exposure.

It is clear there is a shift taking place in the ETF space, though how severe and enduring it is remains to be seen. 

More Closures Ahead

However, the closure storm doesn’t look like it’s letting up anytime soon. Other shutdowns have been announced that will complete later in the year, including 10 WisdomTree ETFs, some of which have fairly significant assets.

The funds are set to close on May 27 and are as follows:

JNMF has roughly $1 million in assets under management, but AXJL has more than $22 million. That said, JNMF launched two years ago, while AXJL rolled out more than a decade ago and has had plenty of time to gather assets.

It should be noted, however, that WisdomTree had more than $40 billion in assets under management at the start of the year. Currently, the firm has roughly $30 billion in AUM, meaning it lost a quarter of its assets. That’s the steepest asset decline among the top 10 issuers.

Contact Heather Bell at [email protected]

2020 ETF Closures

Close DateFundTicker
4/9/2020Forensic Accounting LongShort ETFFLAG
4/9/2020AdvisorShares Cornerstone Small Cap ETFSCAP
4/8/2020VelocityShares 1X Long VSTOXX Futures ETNEVIX
4/8/2020VelocityShares 1X Daily Inverse VSTOXX Futures ETNEXIV
4/8/2020UBS ETRACS - ProShares Daily 3x Long Crude ETNWTIU
4/1/2020ETRACS 2xLeveraged Long Wells Fargo Business Development Company Index ETNBDCL
4/1/2020ETRACS 2xLeveraged Long Wells Fargo Business Development Company Index ETN Series BLBDC
3/31/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Dow Jones Select Dividend Index ETNDVYL
3/30/2020iShares iBonds Mar 2020 Corporate ETFIBDC
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Financial Select SectorFINU
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Short Financial Select SectorFINZ
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Total Bond Market Bear 1X SharesSAGG
3/27/2020Direxion Daily MSCI Developed Markets Bear 3x SharesDPK
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Russia Bear 3x SharesRUSS
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Mid Cap Bear 3X SharesMIDZ
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Nasdaq BiotechnologyUBIO
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Short Nasdaq BiotechnologyZBIO
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Natural Gas Related Bear 3X SharesGASX
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Natural Gas Related Bull 3X SharesGASL
3/27/2020Direxion Daily Regional Banks Bear 3X SharesWDRW
3/27/2020Reality Shares DIVCON Dividend Guard ETFGARD
3/27/2020Direxion Daily MSCI European Financials Bull 2X SharesEUFL
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro 3x Short Crude Oil ETFOILD
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro 3x Crude Oil ETFOILU
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Short Communication Services Select Sector ETFSCOM
3/27/2020ProShares UltraPro Communication Services Select Sector ETFUCOM
3/26/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged MSCI US REIT INDEX ETNLRET
3/26/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Closed-End Fund ETNCEFL
3/26/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Closed-End Fund ETN Series BCEFZ
3/25/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Diversified High Income ETNDVHL
3/25/2020UBS ETRACS - ProShares Daily 3x Inverse Crude ETNWTID
3/24/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Mortgage REIT ETNMORL
3/24/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Wells Fargo MLP Ex-Energy ETNLMLP
3/24/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged U.S. High Dividend Low Volatility ETNHDLV
3/24/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Mortgage REIT ETN Series B MRRL
3/23/2020ETRACS 2xMonthly Leveraged S&P MLP Index ETN Series BMLPZ
3/20/2020ETRACS Monthly Reset 2xLeveraged ISE Exclusively Homebuilders ETNHOML
3/20/2020Columbia Sustainable Global Equity Income ETFESGW
3/18/2020ETRACS 2xMonthly Leveraged Alerian MLP Infrastructure Index ETN Series BMLPQ
3/18/2020Credit Suisse X-Links Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged Alerian MLP Index ETNAMJL
3/16/2020Franklin Liberty International Opportunities ETFFLIO
3/12/2020ETRACS Monthly Pay 2xLeveraged U.S. Small Cap High Dividend ETNSMHD
3/12/2020The Organics ETFORG
3/12/2020The Obesity ETFSLIM
3/6/2020iPath US Treasury Long Bond Bear ETNDLBS
2/14/2020Invesco Shipping ETFSEA
2/14/2020Invesco China Real Estate ETFTAO
2/14/2020Invesco China Small Cap ETFHAO
2/14/2020Invesco Frontier Markets ETFFRN
2/14/2020Invesco CurrencyShares Chinese Renminbi TrustFXCH
2/14/2020Invesco Insider Sentiment ETFNFO
2/14/2020Invesco S&P Global Dividend Opportunities Index ETFLVL
2/14/2020Invesco Dynamic Retail ETFPMR
2/14/2020Invesco S&P Financials Revenue ETFRWW
2/14/2020Invesco BRIC ETFEEB
2/14/2020Invesco DWA NASDAQ Momentum ETFDWAQ
2/14/2020Invesco LadderRite 0-5 Year Corporate Bond ETFLDRI
2/14/2020Invesco MSCI Emerging Markets Equal Country Weight ETFEWEM
2/14/2020Invesco S&P High Income Infrastructure ETFGHII
2/14/2020Invesco CurrencyShares Singapore Dollar TrustFXSG
2/14/2020Invesco CurrencyShares Swedish Krona TrustFXS
2/14/2020Invesco DWA Tactical Sector Rotation ETFDWTR
2/14/2020Invesco DWA Tactical Multi-Asset Income ETFDWIN
2/14/2020Invesco ESG Revenue ETFESGL
2/14/2020Invesco Global ESG Revenue ETFESGF
2/14/2020Aberdeen Standard Bloomberg WTI Crude Oil Strategy K-1 Free ETFAOIL
2/14/2020Invesco Emerging Markets Revenue ETFREEM
2/14/2020Invesco International Revenue ETFREFA
2/14/2020Invesco Global Revenue ETFRGLB
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Low Volatility Factor ETFOVOL
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Momentum Factor ETFOMOM
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Quality Factor ETFOQAL
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Size Factor ETFOSIZ
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Value Factor ETFOVLU
2/14/2020Invesco Russell 1000 Yield Factor ETFOYLD
2/14/2020Invesco Multi-Factor Core Fixed Income ETFIMFC
2/14/2020Invesco Multi-Factor Core Plus Fixed Income ETFIMFP
2/14/2020Invesco Emerging Markets Debt Defensive ETFIEMD
2/14/2020Invesco Corporate Income Defensive ETFIHYD
2/14/2020Invesco Corporate Income Value ETFIHYV
2/14/2020Invesco Emerging Markets Debt Value ETFIEMV
2/14/2020Invesco Emerging Markets Ultra Dividend Revenue ETFREDV
2/14/2020Invesco International Ultra Dividend Revenue ETFRIDV
2/14/2020Invesco Multi-Factor Defensive Core Fixed Income ETFIMFD
2/14/2020Invesco Multi-Factor Income ETFIMFI
2/13/2020Invesco BLDRS Asia 50 ADR Index FundADRA
2/13/2020Invesco BLDRS Developed Markets 100 ADR Index FundADRD
2/13/2020Invesco BLDRS Europe Select ADR Index FundADRU
2/4/2020IQ Enhanced Core Bond U.S. ETFAGGE
1/30/2020Pickens Morningstar Renewable Energy Response ETFRENW
1/24/2020Virtus Glovista Emerging Markets ETFEMEM
1/17/2020WisdomTree Dynamic Bearish U.S. Equity FundDYB
1/17/2020WisdomTree Balanced Income FundWBAL
1/17/2020WisdomTree CBOE Russell 2000 PutWrite Strategy FundRPUT
1/14/2020J.P. Morgan Cushing 30 MLP Index ETNPPLN
1/6/2020CSOP MSCI China A International Hedged ETFCNHX

 

 

 

Heather Bell is a former managing editor of etf.com. She has also held editorial positions at Dow Jones Indexes and Lehman Brothers. Bell is a graduate of Dartmouth college and resides in the Denver area with her two dogs.