The US market for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will likely grow to more than $3.5 trillion in assets over the next five years, according to a new industry projection by iShares, the ETF business of BlackRock. Commenting, Mark Wiedman, Global Head of iShares, said: “In the last decade, ETFs have evolved from obscurity to a $2+ trillion industry, embraced by retail and institutional investors alike. But these are still early days in ETF adoption. Even in the most mature market, the US, there is an incredibly bright future.”

Source has added GBP trading lines to four London-listed US sector exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The move simplifies access for sterling-based investors and comes at a time when ETFs are fast gaining in popularity among all types of investors in the UK. Ted Hood, CEO of Source, said: “ETFs are now attracting a wider group of investors in the UK. We are keen to offer access to key markets and interesting investment themes and opportunities in sterling, thereby avoiding the need for separate FX transactions.”

By David Stevenson – I am, I freely admit, something of an energy bore. In various columns, I’ve been banging on for what seems like an eternity about my structural bias towards the energy sector and, in particular, the energy infrastructure niche. So, given this tireless campaigning for energy-focused ETFs and funds, it won’t come as a great surprise to readers that I think that Source has done us all an enormous favour by listing Europe’s first MLP ETF.

The NYSE Euronext has received approval from the SEC to launch an incentive programme aimed at market makers in exchange-traded products (ETPs). It has been devised to enhance liquidity and reduce trading costs, and is expected to launch in the second half of the year. The programme offers an alternative for incentivising lead market makers (LMM) to be the primary market maker in certain ETPs selected by issuers.

Source’s latest fund, which has raced to almost $50 million in assets in less than a month, shows there’s still plenty of room for innovation in the exchange-traded funds (ETFs) space, especially here in Europe. Launched just three and a half weeks ago by London-based Source, the Source Morningstar US Energy Infrastructure MLP UCITS ETF has proved popular with investors who have funnelled millions into it.

With most mainstream markets and indices tracked by multiple exchange-traded funds (ETFs), ETF providers are increasingly having to find an edge to help their new funds stand out. Often this edge comes via a niche focus or by way of an alternative ‘smart beta’ index. The newly launched Barron’s 400 ETF (BFOR) fits nicely into this latter category. Listed on the NYSE Arca, the fund is based on the Barron’s 400 Index, a rules-based index tracking the performance of 400 equally weighted US companies with strong fundamentals.

Vanguard has expanded its presence in Europe with the cross-listing of seven Irish-domiciled exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the NYSE Euronext exchange in Amsterdam and Paris. The Dutch and French debuts come less than two weeks after the asset manager broadened its European ETF line-up, which first launched in the UK in May 2012, and a little more than four months after it entered the Swiss market via listings on the SIX Swiss Exchange.

Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management has announced the launch of two ‘industry-first’ exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the NYSE Arca: the db X-trackers Municipal Infrastructure Revenue Bond Fund (RVNU) and the db X-trackers Regulated Utilities Fund (UTLT). The new funds offer unique investment opportunities in markets not previously served by ETFs – an increasingly tough ask given the recent explosive expansion of the ETF universe.

SSgA has added two more funds to its roster of ETFs on the NYSE Arca with the launch of the SPDR S&P Global Dividend ETF (WDIV) and the SPDR Barclays 1-10 Year TIPS ETF (TIPX). WDIV is designed to provide investors with exposure to both developed and emerging market dividend-paying companies, through a globally diversified income portfolio strategy. TIPX, meanwhile, is designed to provide investors with access to Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS), a type of inflation-adjusted US government bond.

The CBOE has teamed up with the CME Group to launch the CBOE/CBOT 10-year US Treasury Note Volatility Index. The new index provides a measure of expected volatility specific to the fixed income market by applying the methodology of the widely followed CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) – Wall Street’s so-called ‘fear gauge’ – to futures options data from CME Group’s 10-year US Treasury note contract.