BlackRock’s (NYSE: BLK) iShares unit, the world’s largest ETF issuer, began trading two exchange traded funds on BATS Chi-X Europe, a pan-European listing model aimed at unifying a fragmented market.
The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets UCITS ETF (IEEM) and iShares MSCI World Minimum Volatility UCITS ETF (MVOL) began trading on BATS Chi-X Europe Monday, according to a press release. [BATS, BlackRock Start Europe Cross-Border ETF Exchange]
“With the launch of the first iShares ETFs, on the exchange, market participants now have access to the many benefits and efficiencies of our pan-European reach,” BATS Chi-X Europe CEO Mark Hemsley said in the press release. “We are pleased to share this milestone with our partners at iShares and see this as an important step in our ongoing commitment to improve liquidity and transparency in exchange-traded products for the pan-European trading community,”
Many European countries require issuers to acquire local listings before their ETFs are able to trade within the country. Hemsley believes the BATS Chi-X Europe will help solve the issue of “fragmentation, transparency and liquidity.”
If ETF trades received enough traction across Europe on the BATS Chi-X Europe model, the European ETF industry, which has been lagging behind the U.S. market, could begin to experience greater volume activity. Currently, ETF exchange volumes in Europe represent around 4.8% of total European equity volumes, whereas U.S.-listed ETFs account for over 20% of daily reported volumes, reports Leland Clemons for Financial News.
Additionally, BATS employs the Competitive Liquidity Provider (CLP) program to incentivise market makers, or authorized participants, to augment liquidity in ETFs on the exchange – market makers help create and redeem ETF shares, which help bolster efficiency in the ETF market.
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Max Chen contributed to this article.