WisdomTree Planning Three New EM ETFs

WisdomTree WETF, the fifth-largest U.S. ETF issuer by assets, has filed plans with the Securities and Exchange Commission to possibly introduced three new emerging markets ETFs.

Among the possible new introductions New York-based WisdomTree filed for is the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Consumer Growth Fund. That ETF will draw constituents from a country universe of Brazil, Chile, China, Czech Republic, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand and Turkey.

Index eligibility requirements include a market value of at least $1 billion and average daily trading volume of at least $500,000 for each of the six months preceding the index rebalance, according to the filing.

With a focus on emerging markets consumers, the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Consumer Growth Fund shapes up to be a potential rival to the EGShares Emerging Markets Consumer ETF ECON, which debuted in 2010.

WisdomTree also filed plans for the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Low Volatility Equity Fund. The starting universe is the 500 largest companies by market capitalization that are incorporated and traded in any of the following 17 emerging market nations: Brazil, Chile, China, Czech Republic, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, the Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, and Turkey, according to the filing.

That ETF's index is volatility weighted annually and caps sector and country exposure at 20 percent. The new ETF will face intense competition in the form of the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Minimum Volatility Index Fund EEMV and the PowerShares S&P Emerging Markets Low Volatility Portfolio EELV.

WisdomTree also filed plans for the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Dividend Growth Fund, which will track an index that "is a fundamentally weighted index that consists of emerging market dividend-paying stocks with growth characteristics," according to the filing.

WisdomTree is already a dominant purveyor of emerging markets dividend ETFs as the WisdomTree Emerging Markets Equity Income Fund DEM has nearly $5.5 billion in assets under management. The WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Fund DGS has almost $1.55 billion in AUM.

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