VRP would be the third preferred ETF from PowerShares, following the $2.1 billion PowerShares Preferred Portfolio (NYSEArca: PGX) and the $1.4 billion PowerShares Financial Preferred Portfolio (NYSEArca: PGF).
“We believe VRP offers investors the potential for high current income and lower interest-rate sensitivity than traditional fixed-rate preferred securities. Dividends from variable-rate preferred securities also receive preferential tax rates compared to interest income, which makes them particularly attractive for top tax bracket investors,” said Lorraine Wang, Invesco PowerShares Global head of ETF products and research, in the statement.
Other new ETFs launched by PowerShares this year include the PowerShares NYSE Century Portfolio (NYSEArca: NYCC) and the PowerShares International BuyBack Achievers Portfolio (NasdaqGM: IPKW). [Impressive New ETFs]
ETF Trends editorial team contributed to this post.