In the 20 years since the first exchange-traded fund (ETF), the SPDR Fund, was launched, the ETF market has grown exponentially in terms of both assets under management (AUM) and the number and types of ETFs that are available to investors. ETFs have now become a widely accepted investment tool: institutional and retail investors each account for roughly half of the industry’s assets. ETF products have expanded to include funds targeting exotic and alternative asset classes, such as emerging markets, junk bonds, gold and palladium. Given the phenomenal growth and increase in the diversity and complexity of ETFs, fund managers require services from seasoned professionals who are leaders in the business.
As a leader in serving the registered fund industry, we have committed significant audit, tax, transaction and advisory resources to serving ETFs for almost 20 years. Our ETF professionals have assisted several new entrants to the ETF marketplace in launching their own ETF products. Such assistance has ranged from helping to establish the monitoring and reporting framework to the resolution of the unique tax issues pertaining to ETFs. As new entrants expand their ETF offerings and become more innovative, we continue our active involvement in addressing product-specific issues and supporting managers in the design, development and maintenance of their products.
