Data is the oil of the financial services industry according to the pundits commenting on S&P Global’s offer to buy IHS Markit for USD44 billion, announced this week. This deal is the latest in a trend of institutions buying data, that started with the London Stock Exchange’s USD27 billion purchase last year of Refinitiv.
Data lies behind every trend and theme and this issue of the ETF Express newsletter displays the ETF’s particular strength in representing a theme and, if it’s the right theme, achieving stellar results. Famous for their focus on disruptive innovation, ARK Invest’s client portfolio manager, Ren Leggi, details the returns for ARK Disruptive Innovation, at 101.8 per cent year to date (as of 17/11/2020), while the firm’s assets, totalled at USD4 billion when ETF Express last interviewed them in 2018, are now USD33.3 billion (as of 31/10/2020).
This week Global X announced its launch into Europe, with CEO Luis Berruga telling ETF Express that the firm is the largest thematic ETF provider in the world, with over 24 themed products and it has seen a 50 per cent growth in assets under management in the last 12 months to over USD18 billion.
Another theme has come to our attention this week, where, despite the UK’s FCA’s opinion, we see crypto-based ETPs springing up all over Europe, particularly in Switzerland whose SIX exchange is home to a number of cryptocurrency-based products. We report on ETF industry heavyweight VanEck’s push into the market with the launch of a Bitcoin ETN.
This week also saw the launch of a long/short yield ETF from Leatherback, a launch that comes on the back of the US’s ETF rule which has made it easier for a wider range of active funds to come to market in an ETF format.
Voting is now open for the ETF Express European awards, entering their 11th year, and now in the august company of Bloomberg, who supplied the data on ETF issuers that lies behind these popular awards. Cast your vote here.
Beverly Chandler,
Managing Editor, ETF Express
Companies in this issue
ARK Invest
Fidelity International
Global X ETFs
iClima Earth
Leatherback Asset Management
Refinitiv
TD Asset Management
TrueMark
VanEck
XTrackers