InvestmentsFeb 27 2014

Product review: Amundi NYSE-listed ETF

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Paris-based asset manager Amundi has added to its suite of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with a product listed on the NYSE Euronext that tracks the Russell 2000 Net Total Return index.

The index, a subsidiary of the larger Russell 3000, comprises 2000 stocks making up the smallest 10 per cent of US companies by market cap.

With a narrower focus on smaller companies, Amundi says the fund’s exposure will be biased towards the US domestic economy. The ETF has as TER of 0.35 per cent, which Amundi says is the lowest in the European market. It is available in both euro and dollar share class.

www.amundi.com

Comment:

Amundi, like many of its French peers, seems to be making a concerted effort to have its voice heard across the UK market. The group was founded in 2010 as an 80:20 venture between Crédit Agricole and Société Générale.

As the continent’s largest asset manager, with €750bn assets under management, Amundi claims the tightest spreads in Europe, achieved through its links to around 40 counterparties.

With this level of liquidity and its low TERs then as far as ETF providers go, Amundi seems to make a good case.

For those positive on the outlook for the US domestic economy and are willing to invest outside of sterling, this Ucits fund might make a nice holding at a lower cost, if you’re not quite convinced to entrust an active manager to navigate the recovery yet.

Smaller companies are often younger and not as well understood as some of their larger, more established peers. As such, they often come with a higher degree of risk and volatility, but the diversification through spreading your exposure more broadly, via the ETF structure, should mitigate this to an extent.