First active Australian ETFs are launched by Macquarie Asset Management
With the launch of its first actively managed exchange traded funds, Macquarie Asset Management of Australia will go up against an increasing number of international managers who have also put active ETFs on the market.
The ETFs Macquarie Walter Scott Global Equity Active, Macquarie Income Opportunities Active, and Macquarie Dynamic Bond Active are listed on ASX.
The releases come soon after US asset management behemoth Dimensional Fund Advisors, which introduced its own line of active ETFs to the Australian market.
Global Core Equity (Unhedged), Global Core Equity (AUD Hedged), and Australian Core Equity, Dimensional’s three actively managed funds, were listed on November 13 and feature a “dual-access” structure that allows investors to access funds through both listed and unregistered distribution channels.
JPMorgan Asset Management, which listed the JPMorgan Global Research Enhanced Index Equity Active ETF and JPMorgan Equity Premium Income Active ETF earlier this month, and UK-based asset manager Abrdn, which last month launched an actively managed ETF in Australia with a sustainability theme, are two other international asset managers that have recently entered Australia’s active ETF market.
Up to 100% of the assets in the Macquarie bond strategy may be allocated to sovereign bonds, 70% to investment-grade credit, and 20% to high-yield and/or emerging market debt instruments.
The Macquarie Income Opportunities ETF invests primarily in cash, asset-backed securities, and a variety of domestic and international investment grade floating and fixed rate instruments. It is benchmarked against the Bloomberg AusBond Bank Bill Index.
Macquarie Global Equities ETF, on the other hand, is managed by Walter Scott & Partners, a UK-based equities fund firm that is a part of BNY Mellon Investment Management, and is benchmarked against the MSCI World ex-Australia Index.
The A$892 billion ($584.7 billion) asset management firm Macquarie AM claimed that investors will have simpler access to its global investing capabilities and actively managed strategies thanks to its new ETF platform. Previously, investors could only access these resources through traditional unlisted managed funds.
The US fund giants Vanguard and BlackRock, as well as local ETF provider Betashares, dominate the congested Australian ETF industry, which is one of the fastest growing in the world. There is a severe pricing war between the providers.
about the previous 12 months, the Australian ETF industry’s assets under management increased by about A$26 billion. The market grew tremendously during the last ten years, from around A$10 billion to roughly A$150 billion.
