Displaying items by tag: Blackrock

Blackrock remains the heavyweight when it comes to the ETF market in terms of total assets and issues, but rivals are catching up. As of November of last year, Blackrock managed 32% of total assets in the US ETF market, a slight drop from 33.7% at the same time last year. This figure was at 39% just 4 years ago. 

Blackrock’s major rival in ETFs is Vanguard. While Blackrock has ETFs for nearly every category, Vanguard is focused on fixed income and equities while sticking to its reputation for low costs and diversification. Recent flows into ETFs have favored cheap index funds which is one factor in Vanguard taking some market share. Vanguard has seen its market share rise from 25% to 29% over the last 4 years. 

The story is different in Europe, where Blackrock retains its dominance. As of November 2023, the firm had 44% of total ETF assets, and this figure was unchanged over the last 5 years despite the European ETF market more than doubling. Overall, Blackrock has $9.1 trillion in assets and is expected to have net inflows of over $250 billion. 

Blackrock has the benefits of a first-move advantage in Europe and has developed relationships with institutions. In Europe, investing continues to be driven by institutions rather than retail traders. 

Finsum: Blackrock remains the clear, global leader in ETFs. However, Vanguard is catching up especially in the US, where its index funds are seeing rapid growth.

Blackrock is the leading company in the $7 trillion ETF market in terms of assets and new issues. According to Dominik Rohe, the head of BlackRock’s Americas ETF and Index Investments business, active ETFs are a category with significant growth potential.

He notes that the boundary between active and passive ETFs is becoming ambiguous as all types of strategies are now being offered with an ETF wrapper. This is leading to more complex and innovative offerings. In 2023, the firm launched 18 active ETFs with more planned for 2024. According to Rohe, active ETFs currently make up 38% of all US-based ETFs with a total of $101 billion in assets under management. And, they are changing the concept of what an ETF can be from a passive vehicle to a ‘technology that will generate active return’ for investors. To that end, it’s launched active ETFs for alpha, specific goals, and strategies.

Another boost for active ETFs is due to the increase in fee-based financial planning and fiduciary wealth management which is leading to the ascendance of model portfolios. These are typically constructed with ETFs with the category growing at a 15% annual rate. Blackrock is forecasting that total assets in model portfolios will exceed $10 trillion by 2027, more than doubling its current level of $4.5 trillion, leading to more demand for these types of products. 

Finsum: Blackrock had an eventful 2023 with a bevy of active ETF launches. It sees continued growth for the category with the continued adoption of model portfolios as a key factor.

The cryptocurrency industry stands on the precipice of a potentially pivotal moment, with several applications for crypto-based ETFs awaiting approval by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Recent activities suggest the SEC is actively preparing to issue its decisions, potentially within the next few months.

The world's largest asset manager, including BlackRock, has expressed increasing confidence in the SEC's approval of their spot Bitcoin ETF applications, possibly as early as January 2024. While the outcome remains uncertain, the SEC's recent engagements with applicants and its compressed 21-day public comment window indicate a focused and potentially accelerated decision-making process.

These developments have fueled speculation in the market, with some attributing the recent rise in Bitcoin prices to the anticipated SEC decision. Others cite the upcoming Bitcoin halving event in 2024 as a contributing factor.

Regardless of the specific drivers, the next few months will likely greatly impact the cryptocurrency landscape. The SEC's decisions on these ETF applications could have significant implications for investor access, market liquidity, and the overall development of the crypto asset class.

Finsum: Anticipation for SEC's decision on crypto ETFs grows, hinting at major shifts in market access to crypto-based investment vehicles.

In a CNBC interview, Blackrock COI Rick Rieder shared some thoughts on Blackrock’s newest active fixed income fund, and why he believes that active fixed income offers several advantages for investors. 

Active fixed income managers have the latitude to seek opportunities that are beyond what’s represented in the indices. As an example, he cites the Blackrock Flexible Income ETF (BINC) which has outperformed its peers since its inception in late May. Over this period, BINC is up 0.3%, while the iShares Core US Aggregate Bond ETF (AGG) is off by 4% and the iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) is down 0.2%. 

BINC’s biggest allocation is to bonds outside of the US at 22% with US high yield debt and US investment grade debt accounting for 17% and 14%, respectively. According to Rieder, the stronger US dollar is leading to more attractive opportunities overseas. 

Passive funds are unable to take advantage of these opportunities. Another advantage for active fixed income is that certain pockets of risk can be avoided as well. He cites this combination as why active fixed income has outperformed, since it leads to more yield and reduced volatility.  

Finsum: Blackrock CIO Rick Rieder explained some of the structural advantages of active fixed income to identify opportunities and avoid pockets of weakness. 

In an interview with Bloomberg, Salim Ramji, Blackrock’s global head of iShares and index investments, spoke about the growth of model portfolios, and why he believes that assets under management (AUM) are projected to more than double over the next 5 years from $4.2 trillion to over $10 trillion.

Ramji commented that “It’s going to be massive. It’s the way in which more and more fiduciary advisers are doing business, and, as a result, that’s the way in which we’re doing business with them. It’s really just changed from being a cottage industry to being something that’s a real force for every fiduciary wealth adviser in the United States.” 

Model portfolios are typically composed of ETFs and other funds that are bundled into pre-built strategies. An indication of the growth of model portfolios is that changes in allocations can be seen in trading volumes and fund flows data. For iShares, model portfolios comprise more than half of flows, while they accounted for a third of flows 2 years ago. The company expects similar traction for model portfolios in its international markets as well.

Blackrock’s bullishness on model portfolios is noteworthy as it is the largest asset manager in the world with $9 trillion in AUM and also the largest ETF issuer. 

Finsum: Blackrock is forecasting that assets under management for model portfolios will exceed $10 trillion over the next 5 years.