USA
Anfield lists actively managed fixed income ETF of ETFs
Anfield Capital Management, a new California-based ETF adviser about which we can find little information, is listing a new actively managed ETF of ETFs that targets income. The Anfield Universal Fixed Income ETF (AFIF) will have a very broad investment remit. According to its prospectus, it can invest in anything that may generate income. This includes all manner of derivatives, private debts, MLPs, junk bonds, other ETFs (including equity ETFs) – you name it.
AFIF will use both top-down macro and bottom up analysis in its security selection. It will also actively trade. There will be no target yield, maturity or duration. The fund will charge 1%, which is on the high end even for actively managed income ETFs. Northern Lights will be the fund issuer, presumably on a contract basis.
Europe
Franklin Templeton lists smart beta ETF
Franklin Templeton has widened out its European ETF offering, listing the Franklin LibertyQ European Equity UCITS ETF (FREQ, FLEQ) on major European exchanges. FLEQ will add to FT's European LibertyShares range, the sub-brand under which it offers smart beta exposures.
FLEQ will track the performance of the LibertyQ Europe equity index, investing in the large and mid-capitalisation stocks. The portfolio consists of approximately 115 companies which have been selected from the MSCI Europe index using a multi-factor selection process.
Franklin Templeton only entered the European market late last year with the issuing of five smart beta ETFs in September 2017 and then added two active fixed income ETFs in June this year.
Explaining the factors chosen, Caroline Baron, a sales representative at FT, said: ”For our line-up of multi-factor strategies, we target high-quality companies that are attractively valued using momentum to identify investment trends and avoid value traps. We also use low volatility to help provide a defensive measure against downturns.”