In Canada, the industry has grown in 2015 to include 11 ETF providers.rvlsoft/Getty Images/iStockphoto
The exchange-traded fund industry in Canada is continuing to grow rapidly, both in assets under management and the number of options being offered to investors.
The ETF sector in Canada brought in a further $7-billion (U.S.) in net new assets so far this year, according to research firm ETFGI. Canadian exchange-traded funds and exchange-traded products have now hit over $85.8-billion (Canadian) in assets, with about 368 ETFs alone. (Exchange-traded products have similarities to ETFs in the way they trade and settle but do not use an open-end fund structure.)
"Although investors faced uncertainty in China and Greece during July, they continued to invest significant net new assets in equity ETFs," according to Deborah Fuhr, managing partner of research firm ETFGI, in a statement.
Earlier this month, the global ETF/ETP industry surpassed the hedge-fund industry with $2.971-trillion (U.S.) in assets under management – $2-billion greater than the $2.969-trillion invested in hedge funds, according to an estimate from Hedge Fund Research.
In Canada, the industry has grown in 2015 to include 11 ETF providers, with Questrade Wealth Management and Auspice Capital the most recent to join the roster.
Questrade launched its ETF family last March with six ETFs – four sector ETFs and two U.S. mid-cap ones.
The wealth manager will further expand its lineup later this fall to include four more funds, which will be actively managed. They are the Questrade Fixed Income Core Plus ETF, Questrade World Growth and Income ETF, Questrade International Equity ETF, and Questrade Global Total Equity ETF. Management fees for Questrade Fixed Income Core Plus ETF will be 0.5 per cent, while all others will be 0.85 per cent. Three of the funds will be sub-advised by Jarislowsky Fraser.
BMO Asset Management has plans to launch four new ETFs this year: the BMO Low Volatility International Equity ETF (ZLI), BMO Europe High Dividend Covered Call Hedged to CAD ETF (ZWE), BMO US Put Write ETF (ZPW) and BMO International Dividend Hedged to CAD ETF (ZDH). Management fees range from 0.4 per cent to 0.65 per cent.
And Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. will be adding to its product shelf soon with three new funds, which will include a municipal bond ETF. The Horizons Active Cdn Municipal Bond ETF (HMP) will hit the market later this week and invest exclusively in the Canadian municipal bond market. It will have a management fee of 0.35 per cent. The Horizons Managed Global Opportunities ETF (HGM) and Horizons Managed Multi-Asset Momentum ETF (HMA) will be open to investors over the next several weeks. Both funds have management fees of 0.85 per cent.
Meanwhile, iShares, BlackRock Asset Management Canada Ltd.'s ETF business, grew its ETF fund family to 103 funds with the launch of two new funds on Monday. The funds, which will provide investors exposure to the mid-capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market, are the iShares S&P U.S. Mid-Cap Index ETF (XMC) and iShares S&P U.S. Mid-Cap Index ETF (XMH), a Canadian-hedged version. Each have a management fee of 0.15 per cent.