EGShares Files Plan For Bond ETFs

Emerging Global Advisors, the ETF issuer that focuses solely on emerging markets funds, has filed plans with the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer its first fixed income ETFs. These ETFs will represent Emerging Global's initial foray into a booming sub-sector of the ETF universe: Emerging markets bond funds that track bonds issued in local currencies, not U.S. dollars. While dollar-denominated emerging markets bond funds have proven popular with investors, the wave of the future appears to be with non-dollar denominated funds. The iShares JPMorgan USD Emerging Markets Bond Fund EMB is the largest and oldest EM bond ETF with almost $3.2 billion in assets under management, but non-dollar EM bond ETFs have grabbed a foothold in this market niche as well. The newly minted iShares Emerging Markets Local Currency Bond Fund LEMB and the more well established WisdomTree Emerging Markets Local Debt Fund ELD have proven especially popular with investors as Benzinga noted in this week's “ETF Showdown.” LEMB hasn't even been trading a month and already has $30.3 million in assets under management while ELD has over $1.1 billion in AUM. Tickers and expense ratios were not included in the EGShares filing. Most EGShares ETFs have expense ratios of 0.85%. The firm had 19 ETFs with $535 million in AUM at the end of October, according to data from the National Stock Exchange.