VanEck has entered into a formal agreement to purchase Netherlands-based ETF issuer Think ETF Asset Management (Think ETFs) in a move which will see the number of VanEck UCITS ETFs available in Europe rise from six to 20.
Jan van Eck, CEO of VanEck.
Jan van Eck, CEO of VanEck, commented, “ETFs have seen significant uptake from the investment community in Europe over the past several years, and there are events on the horizon that appear likely to spur an even greater migration of assets to the ETF structure in European markets.
“As this unfolds, we are very excited to bring the Think team and their innovative product offerings into the VanEck fold.”
The transaction will add Think’s €1.5bn in assets under management to VanEck’s existing global ETF AUM of approximately $37bn, the vast majority of which is found in the firm’s US-listed ETF suite.
While VanEck launched its first ETFs in Europe in May 2015, the UCITS-compliant suite has been somewhat slow to accumulate assets; there is currently under $300m AUM behind the range of ETFs, the largest of which is the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners UCITS ETF (GDX LN) with $116m.
VanEck’s current ETF line-up offers strategies which are relatively non-mainstream – gold mining equities, junior gold miners, natural resource equities, US preferred stocks, local-denominated EM debt, and Morningstar’s MOAT strategy for US equities.
Think’s ETF line-up includes funds offering European, North American, and global equity exposure (as well as global ESG-screened and North American dividend funds); three funds tracking Markit iBoxx indices targeting government and corporate bonds; and a global real estate ETF. In addition, the firm offers three globally diversified multi-asset ETFs with ‘defensive’, ‘neutral’, or ‘offensive’ risk characteristics.
VanEck will purchase a majority stake in Amsterdam-headquartered Think from the firm’s current owners – BinckBank, Flow Traders, and the senior management of Think. Think’s senior management will retain a minority stake in the company, with the rest to be owned by VanEck. Pending approval by the relevant supervisory authorities, the acquisition is expected to be completed later this year.
“In the Netherlands, as elsewhere in Europe, private and institutional investors are becoming increasingly aware of the advantages that ETFs offer,” said Martijn Rozemuller, managing director of Think. “The next few years look to be especially transformative and may spur ever greater investor interest in the ETF category. Working with an established global ETF leader like VanEck is very exciting for us, and we are eager to add our thoughts, products, and ideas to VanEck’s efforts to grow its European reach.”