Two new exchange traded fund (ETF) filings from SPDRs and WisdomTree will come with a twist.
The SPDRs new ETF is another equal-weight fund based around the S&P 500. Index Universe reports that the ALPS Equal Sector Weight ETF would track a Merrill Lynch benchmark that divvies up the broad U.S. stock market by its nine major sectors, according to a recent filing still under review by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund-of-funds ETF will come with an expense ratio of 0.55%.
The proposed ETF would compete against equal-weight sector portfolios both from Rydex and ProShares, however, the twist is that the new ETF will weight upon a capitalization basis. The expense ratio is set at 0.55%.
WisdomTree is filing for two new ETFs, which would use currency hedging strategies. The WisdomTree DEFA Hedged Fund and the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Hedge Fund would invest in similar fashion as current index-based ETFs on the market.
Index Universe reports that there is a twist here, as well: the proposed ETFs plan to hedge each portfolio’s long-only exposure to equities by using different currencies. According to the filings, the process in each fund will be rules-based and tied to specially created benchmarks from WisdomTree.
No other data is available yet, but the expense ratios are at 0.63% for each fund.
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