ETFs and Funds - Articles & White Papers

In the volatile first quarter of 2020, U.S. insurance companies invested heavily in Fixed Income ETFs as liquidity dried up in the cash market. In the second quarter, insurers sold off Equity ETFs, but in the third quarter, they returned to buying ETFs, adding over USD 1 billion to their portfolios. While holdings data are…

Although SPACs have been in existence for over 30 years, it is only fairly recently that SPACs have come to be viewed as a legitimate alternative to a traditional U.S. IPO. The explosion of SPACs in 2020 was driven by the highly favorable economic return to SPAC IPO sponsors, the initial market challenges caused by the…

After a relatively quiet decade following the Global Financial Crisis, volatility returned with a vengeance in 2020. Backed by fiscal and monetary stimulus, the S&P 500® gained 18.4% on the year, though this bout of volatility and positive returns did little to help the case for active management. After adjusting for…

The SPIVA Australia Scorecard reports on the performance of Australian active funds against their respective benchmark indices over different time periods. This scorecard evaluated returns of over 897 Australian equity funds (large, mid, and small cap, as well as A-REIT), 475 international equity funds, and 112 Australian…

In their paper, “A rising tide lifts some (Japanese) boats: The Bank of Japan’s ETF purchases and their impact on market signals for individual stocks”], four members of EPFR’s research team utilized the Informa company’s database of fund and stock level flows data to examine the degree to which the BOJ program is affecting…

The insurance industry is approaching an inflection point. After years of sacrificing credit quality or liquidity for yield, insurers are re-evaluating their investments to address the economic fallout of the COVID-19 crisis. Find out how insurers are using fixed income ETFs, liquid alternatives, and ESG criteria to address…

The SPIVA South Africa Scorecard measures the performance of actively managed South African equity and fixed income funds denominated in South African rands (ZAR) against their respective benchmark indices over one, three, and five-year investment horizons. Over 78% of South African Equity funds underperformed the S&P…

The S&P Target Date Scorecard provides performance comparisons and analytics covering the U.S. target date fund (TDF) universe.

Global gold ETFs lost 84.7 tonnes (-US$4.6bn, -2.0% AUM) in February, marking outflows for the third time in four months, and the seventh worst historical monthly holdings loss.

Josh Brown, author of The Reformed Broker blog and frequent CNBC guest, hosted OSAM CEO Patrick O'Shaughnessy on his podcast, The Compound Show. They discussed the future of indexing, specifically Custom Indexing and Canvas.

By 2025, most financial advisors will use web-based software to create and manage Custom Indexes for their clients. Standard indexes have a single methodology; one ruleset dictating what they own and how they rebalance. Standard indexes are “one size fits all.” Like standard indexes, Custom Indexes also invest and rebalance…

S&P Dow Jones Indices hosts a roundtable discussion examining the growth of passive investing in India.

What can India learn from developed markets where ETF sponsors are seen establishing a footprint early on? This video by S&P Dow Jones Indices explores further.

Certain features that are typical of high yield corporate bonds impose costs on high yield portfolios. These costs are not reflected in high yield indices, which means that portfolio managers are put at a disadvantage and that returns of passive high yield funds are structurally lower than the index.

Despite liquidity and pricing challenges, the reputation of ETFs emerged stronger than ever. As investors look to the future, existing and emerging trends such as the growth of fixed income and active ETFs are poised to gather strength as investor preferences drive further innovation and adoption among asset managers. In…

A sharp rise in U.S. interest rates and a stronger dollar have weighed on gold recently. But a rebound in economic activity and a lower gold price have provided opportunities for consumers and strategic investors alike. Looking forward, the World Gold Council believes that a levelling in interest rates on the back of…

North American gold ETF funds drove 86% of Q1 net outflows as gold fell and rates rose. Global AUM have fallen by 20% since August 2020 high. Net long positions for gold COMEX futures fell to 490t, the lowest level since May 2019.

Last year, SIFMA wrote a note explaining the basics of special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC) and analyzing issuance trends, titled "SIFMA Insights Spotlight: 2020, the Year of the SPAC." At the rate 2021 issuance is going, this could be the new year of the SPAC. In this report, SIFMA analyses year-to-date…

Bond market structure has evolved rapidly in recent years as regulatory change, concern about bank capital adequacy, and the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) combined to move bond markets towards exchanges and electronic venues. ETFs facilitated these developments, helped underlying liquidity, and allowed investors to express…