By LIAM PLEVEN Exchange-traded funds have lured many investors away from mutual funds by offering lower fees. But increasingly, some ETFs are also using fees to compete with other ETFs. In a handful of high-profile cases, particularly in commodities and stocks, investors can choose between two ETFs that are virtually…Read More

By Christopher Condon on May 31, 2012   If you are convinced, really convinced, the price of crude oil will rise today and U.S. stocks will fall, Factor Advisors LLC has an exchange-traded fund for you. The FactorShares 2X: Oil Bull/S&P500 Bear (FOL) (FOL) offered by the New York-based firm…Read More

    iShares, the exchange-traded fund provider, and data vendor Bloomberg have joined forces to offer a consolidated tape for ETFs in a bid to increase post-trade transparency and limit the effects of market fragmentation in Europe. As part of the joint venture, the first of its kind in the…Read More

By Murray Coleman Heading into this month, just 25 funds held 61% of all the assets in U.S.-listed ETFs–and there are more than 1,458 on the market right now, according to investment researcher XTF Global. That herd-like mentality is credited by analysts to an emphasis–some say an overemphasis–on size and…Read More

Breaking News: Bloomberg LP reports Facebook will be raising its IPO price range by 15% (from $28-$34 to $34-$38) and AAPL co-founder Steve Wozniak said he will buy shares in Facebook at the get go, regardless of price. [caption id="attachment_684" align="alignleft" width="104"] AAPL co-founder Steve Wozniak[/caption] In the same story,…Read More

Excerpts Courtesy of James Armstrong/Traders Magazine For some illiquid exchange-traded funds, the price isn’t always right. Spreads can be unreasonably wide, luring the less informed to take the bait and accept a price that is far from reasonable. Fortunately, those spreads are slowly narrowing due to competition. With illiquid funds,…Read More

Here's a morale booster for BNY Mellon staff: NEW YORK, May 1, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- BNY Mellon, the global leader in investment management and investment services, has been named as the 2011 "Best Service Provider - The Americas" at the eighth annual Global ETF Awards, which is sponsored…Read More

(Reuters) - Abydos Capital, a new hedge fund run by a former partner at one of London's most high-profile oil investors, is worried about a potential military strike against Iran and plans to use options to protect his portfolio. Jean-Louis Le Mee, Chief Investment Officer of Abydos, told Reuters he…Read More

According to Benzinga.com's ETF Professor, its not necessarily the size of the ETF, but the motion when it comes to investor returns. From Benzinga's April 23 edition: "..There are plenty of instances in life when bigger is better. When it comes to exchange-traded products, bigger isn't always associated with better…Read More

Courtesy of the ETF Professor at Benzinga.com Following the March 22 debacle concerning the VelocityShares Daily 2x VIX Short-Term ETN (NYSE: TVIX  that saw the now infamous ETN tumble 30% in that one trading day, traders and investors predictably wondered what exchange-traded product could be next to fall victim to…Read More

  An exchange-traded fund platform service has been launched into the UK and European market to help IFAs and wealth managers ensure best execution when recommending clients invest in ETFs. Laurie Pinto, chief executive of London-based securities research firm NSBO, said the service is being offered through a joint venture…Read More

ETF Trends' Tom Lydon makes a poignant observation when pointing out that MUB , iShares S&P National Municipal Bond Fund ETF is continuing to trade at a discount to its NAV, which for some, is a disturbing bearish signal. While ETF "discount trading" is not necessarily unusual in and of…Read More

We took the liberty of scraping an interesting note from this a.m.'s  Notes from the WallachBeth ETF Desk : "...On to Apple: Today will sure set a new tone and a new era for Apple lovers and haters; the iPad 3 (aka iPad) has been released, praised and torn down.…Read More

Yes, the equities markets are on a roll; the bulls are boisterous, and the "buy and holders" are popping champagne corks. Given this scenario, who would even suggest the idea of a fiduciary fund manager employing option-based hedging strategies that can potentially cut into upside returns?? After all, even though…Read More

Now that we've all forgotten the name of that former derivatives trader from Goldman who enjoyed his 15 minutes of "de-fame", we can now all re-focus on the brand that's causing people to line up once again for their latest product offering: Apple Inc. According to ETF Research Center, 91…Read More

Following is courtesy of ETF Database market analyst Stoyan Bojinov: Are we near the top or did the bull train just leave the station? Fundamental news has been bolstering equity markets higher since the start of 2012, although many investors are fearful that if they jump in now, the next…Read More

If you haven't read, or at least heard about the brouhaha surrounding GoldmanSachs' former head of equity derivatives Greg Smith and his farewell-to-the-firm soliloquy in today's New York Times, you might be on an advance scouting mission to Mars on behalf of Newt Gingrich. Aside from this story occupying Wall…Read More

Social Media + Financial Services is (so far) an oxymoron. After all, the odds are 10:1 that you're compliance officer will call you a moron if you solicit approval to become socially-engaged in any digital venue. All of that said, the tide always turns, until of course, it comes back…Read More