The last few weeks of 2019 were anything but quiet in the ETF space when it came to launches, with products from existing firms as well as newcomers cropping up.
There were roughly 250 launches in all of 2019—hardly a record. And closures topped 125—again, not a record, but certainly nothing to sneeze at. There were more than 20 launches during the month of December alone, many of them occurring when you were probably on your holiday vacation.
A new issuer called SP Funds rolled out two ETFs, via Tidal Growth’s exemptive relief, that offer exposures compliant with the principles of Islam: The SP Funds Dow Jones Global Sukuk ETF (SPSK) launched on Dec. 30 with a 0.65% expense ratio, and the SP Funds S&P 500 Sharia Industry Exclusions ETF (SPUS) launched on Dec. 18 with a 0.49% expense ratio. Both funds list on the NYSE Arca.
Another newcomer, Source Asset Management, rolled out an actively managed ETF focused on high dividend equities, the Source Dividend Opportunity ETF (DVOP). It comes with an expense ratio of 0.50% and lists on Cboe Global Markets, the parent company of ETF.com.
Established Issuers
AdvisorShares rolled out two funds implementing Dorsey Wright models that are based on technical indicators. The AdvisorShares Dorsey Wright FSM All Cap World ETF (DWAW) and the AdvisorShares Dorsey Wright FSM US Core ETF (DWUS), despite being entirely quantitative, are both actively managed and invest in other ETFs.
The funds focus on equity ETFs that are ranked within the top tier of their respective models, but can switch to more defensive positions in short-term fixed income ETFs when the model indicates equity weakness and cash strength, according to the prospectuses for both funds. The ETFs each come with an expense ratio of 1.14%.
Franklin Templeton meanwhile has delved into the alternatives space for the first time with an actively managed fund that seeks to combine a strategy targeting the quality, value, momentum and carry strategies with a long/short strategy that uses derivatives across the equity, fixed income, commodity and currency spaces. The Franklin Liberty Systematic Style Premia ETF (FLSP) comes with an expense ratio of 0.65% and lists on the NYSE Arca.
Contact Heather Bell at [email protected]
