BlackRock’s iShares exchange-traded funds business is launching a series of initiatives to enhance the value proposition it delivers to investors both in the US and globally.
These initiatives include:
• Creating the iShares Core Series, a suite of 10 US ETFs designed for the needs of long-term, buy-and-hold investors that combines competitive pricing with diversified, tax-efficient products using premier index providers.
• Launching a major, multi-pronged global brand initiative which recognises that every investor is unique and communicates the advantages of using the products that eight out of 10 large professional investors choose for their ETFs.
• Integrating the iShares and BlackRock US retail sales teams, creating the largest retail field force in the US asset management industry, to offer financial advisers and distribution partners a fully integrated combination of index and active products and solutions for today’s investors.
Mark Wiedman (pictured), managing director and global head of iShares, says: “As we look to build on our market-leading position3 in the ETF industry, we are taking a number of steps to further bolster our value proposition for investors, with an initial focus on the US. The combination of our iShares Core Series targeting buy-and-hold investors and a campaign to refresh the powerful iShares brand – supported by what will now be the industry’s largest US retail sales force – are key components of our broader plan to drive even stronger growth in the US and globally.”
The iShares Core Series is a suite of products offering a competitively priced, diversified, tax-efficient family of ETFs that investors can use as building blocks for the heart of their portfolios in domestic and international equities and US fixed income. Designed to fit together to provide broad equity and fixed-income exposure, the series allows long-term investors to tailor the mix of funds to match their individual choice.
Composed of four new and six existing funds, this is the first series of iShares ETFs designed specifically with long-term buy-and-hold investors in mind and is backed by the world-class analytics and global investment insight of BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager. The suite can be supplemented with iShares solutions from a broad selection of ETFs for investors seeking to address more specific needs, from earning income in retirement to capitalising on market opportunities in the shorter-term. The iShares Core Series comprises the following funds:
US equities
• iShares Core S&P Total US Stock Market ETF
• iShares Core S&P 500 ETF
• iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF
• iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF
International equities
• iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF
• iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF
• iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF
US fixed income
• iShares Core Total US Bond Market ETF
• iShares Core Long-Term US Bond ETF
• iShares Core Short-Term US Bond ETF
