BetaShares launches new bond ETF
BetaShares has launched the Australian Investment Grade Corporate Bond (CRED) exchange-traded fund (ETF), which would offer investors access to the Australian corporate bond market.
The fund would provide exposure to a portfolio of investment-grade, fixed-rate Australian corporate bonds and would aim to provide an income, paid monthly, which would be expected to exceed the income paid on cash, term deposits, government and composite bond exposure, the firm said.
At as 31 May, the portfolio of bonds in the index tracked by CRED provided a yield-to-maturity of around four per cent per annum versus a yield-to-maturity of 2.6 per cent per annum from the benchmark Australian Composite Bond Index and the current RBA cash rate of 1.5 per cent per annum.
According to the firm, it would also be the lowest-cost Australian fixed-rate corporate bond ETF currently available on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) (at 0.25 per cent per annum).
BetaShares managing director, Alex Vynokur, said that the launch of the new ETF responded to investors’ continued demand for fixed-income ETFs, a market which received over $360 million of inflows in the first four months of this year.
“We believe Australian corporate bonds have an important place in investors’ portfolios,” Vynokur said.
“CRED provides this access in a simple, cost-effective way, with the additional liquidity benefit of an exchange-traded fund.”
Recommended for you
Platinum Asset Management has put its two closed-end funds under strategic review in a bid to reduce the share price discount to pre-tax NTA and maximise shareholder value.
In the latest Meet the Manager profile, Money Management speaks with Michael Skinner, founder and managing director at Blackwattle Investment Partners.
Perpetual has seen AUM rise 6 per cent in the last quarter but the departure of a longstanding JOHCM fund manager led to outflows of $2.2 billion from his strategy.
Global fixed income fund Bentham Global Opportunities has been added to several major platforms, enabling it to be accessed more easily by financial advisers.
