The reasons for the rise of the ETF industry are numerous: intraday liquidity, (potentially) superior tax efficiency, and enhanced transparency relative to traditional actively-managed mutual funds have all contributed to the billions of dollars of inflows that these funds have seen in recent years. But the real attraction for most ETF investors is the reduced expenses these products offer, often only a fraction of the fees charged by mutual funds. [click to continue…]
In April of this year, Barclays announced that it had agreed to sell its iShares line of ETFs to private equity firm CVC Capital Partners for $4.4 billion. So why all the speculation lately that BlackRock and other banks are in the running to acquire the fund family? As part of its deal with CVC, Barclays inserted a “go shop” clause, which allows it to seek out potential acquirers until June 18. With that deadline less than two weeks away, BlackRock and Bank of New York Mellon have emerged as frontrunners, but the fate of iShares is still murky. Here’s a look at several companies rumored to be interested in making an acquisition: [click to continue…]
