The turnover in alternative exchange-traded product landscape is growing evidence of a maturing market.
In June, the segment lost four ETPs but made up ground with the launch of three more and a registration filing for yet another.
AdvisorShares lodged paperwork with the SEC for the Treesdale Rising Rates ETF (anticipated as NYSE Arca: HDGB), an actively managed fund geared to capitalize on increasing yields in the mortgage market.
The new filing compensates for AdvisorShares’ June 21 closure of its Rockledge SectorSAM ETF (NYSE Arca: SSAM). The long/short equity fund amassed a scant $1.3 million in its 18-month history.
The PowerShares S&P 500 BuyWrite ETF (NYSE Arca: PBP), one of the largest hedged equity exchange-traded products, picked up some competition in June with the launch of the Horizons S&P 500 Covered Call ETF (NYSE Arca: HSPX). Like PBP, HSPX overlays a covered call writing program on top of an S&P 500 portfolio though HSPX, with an annual expense of 65 basis points is ten bps cheaper.
Two commodity-related notes were issued by Credit Suisse last month. The Credit Suisse Commodity Benchmark ETN (NYSEArca: CSCB), bearing an annual investment fee of 65 basis points, tracks an index of 34 production- and liquidity-weighted commodities. The strategy underlying the Credit Suisse Commodity Rotation ETN (NYSEArca: CSCR) routinely culls eight commodities with the highest degree of backwardation from a universe of 24 futures and costs 85 bps a year.
BlackRock liquidated its $43.3 million iShares Diversified Alternatives Trust (NYSE Arca: ALT) on June 4. The actively managed fund, launched in October 2009, traded an amalgam of financial assets including equity, fixed income and currencies in the futures and forwards markets. The closure was the first iShares liquidation in 11 years.
On June 5, investors said sayonara to two UBS hard asset notes. The $3.5 million ETRACS Short Platinum (NYSE Arca: PTD) and the $9.4 million ETRACS Dow Jones-UBS Commodity 2-4-6 Blended Futures ETN (NYSEArca: BLND) were closed as part of a seven-note liquidation sweep by the Swiss bank.
