An exchange traded fund (ETF) provider that closed up shop in the wake of the global financial crisis is planning a comeback.
Olivier Ludwig for Index Universe reports that FocusShares is now back after closing its ETFs in 2008. One thing that’s different is who owns it: Scottrade acquired the provider in June.
FocusShares filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch 15 ETFs based on Morningstar indexes that cover a slew of asset classes and sectors, including small-caps, basic materials, financial services, utilities and consumer cyclicals. The ETFs could hit the markets in early 2011.
The acquisition by Scottrade and subsequent filings are a great strategic move. That these funds have the Morningstar name behind them will add further credence.
We’re seeing a greater number of moves like this – Fidelity, TD Ameritrade, Vanguard and Schwab all got into position early in order to take advantage of the investor’s return to the market. There are trillions of dollars on the sidelines, and the industry’s players want a piece of it.
This is a great strategic move, and the Morningstar name has a solid brand behind it
Also this week, Global X filed papers with the SEC to launch an ETF targeting oil companies around the world that are highly correlated with the price of oil.
The Global X Oil Equities ETF will be based on the Solactive Global Oil Equities Index, which is a free-float-adjusted, liquidity-tested and market-capitalization-weighted benchmark. Olivier Ludwig for Index Universe reports that the fund will actually own companies within the index. [The Benefits of Owning Commodity ETFs.]
Tisha Guerrero contributed to this article.