At the start of this month, a mere four exchange traded products had been shuttered since 2014 began, indicating the pace of closures is moderating despite still robust new product proliferation.
However, a slower pace of ETF closures is not reflective of the number ETFs and ETNs that are vulnerable to elimination. Wealth Management’s list of ETPs in danger of closure resided at 91 at the start of February, up from 80 in late November 2013. [ETFs in Danger of Closure Rises]
“The February Liquidation Watch list is dominated by equity and commodity ETPs, accounting for 39 and 28 on the list, respectively. There are also 12 fixed income ETPs, eight currency ETPs and four multi-asset ETPs that round out the February report,” reports Michael Martin for Wealth Management.
More ETFs were closed earlier this week, when Invesco’s(NYSE: IVZ) PowerShares unit, the fourth-largest U.S. issuer of ETFs, liquidated four funds. [PowerShares Portfolio Changes Take Effect]