Americas ETP News
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Van Eck Global reduces expense cap for Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap ETF
September 29, 2011--New York-based investment manager Van Eck Global announced that it is lowering the expense cap on its Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap ETF (NYSE Arca: BRF), effective today. BRF’s expense cap is being reduced from 62 basis points (bps) to 59 bps. Van Eck expects that, as a result of this, investors in BRF will pay lower fees.
The Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap ETF (BRF) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Market Vectors Brazil Small-Cap Index. The Index provides exposure to publicly traded small capitalization companies that are domiciled and primarily listed on an exchange in Brazil or that generate at least 50 percent of their revenues in Brazil. As of September 28, BRF had approximately $620 million in investor assets under management.
This marks the second time in the history of BRF that Van Eck has lowered the fund’s expense cap, and BRF is the third ETF in Van Eck’s Market Vectors family to have its expense cap reduced so far this year. In January, the firm announced that the expense cap for Market Vectors Indonesia Index ETF (IDX) was being reduced from 68 bps to 60 bps, and that the expense cap for Market Vectors Poland ETF (PLND) was being reduced from 65 bps to 60 bps.
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Source: Van Eck Global
CBOE to Acquire National Stocl Exchange
September 29, 2011--CBOE Stock Exchange (CBSX) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the National Stock Exchange, Inc. (NSX), an all-electronic stock exchange which is owned primarily by several nationally-known broker-dealers. The acquisition will allow CBSX to expand its footprint in the securities exchange space by wholly owning and operating a second exchange.
Plans call for CBSX to operate NSX as a separate exchange, while consolidating data systems and business operations.
The NSX acquisition, which has been approved by CBSX and NSX boards of directors, is subject to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval and is expected to be finalized in the fall of 2011.
"The acquisition of NSX is an important milestone, marking a new phase of growth at CBSX," CBSX CEO David Harris said. "Economies of scale should enable us to efficiently operate a second exchange and to grow our customer base by providing additional pricing models to the U.S. equities marketplace."
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Source: CBOE
State Street Global Advisors Launches Three New Industry SPDR(R) Exchange Traded Funds
September 29, 2011--State Street Global Advisors (SSgA)*, the asset management business of State Street Corporation, today announced that the SPDR S&P(R) Aerospace & Defense ETF (symbol:XAR), SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETF (symbol:XHS), and SPDR S&P Software & Services ETF (symbol:XSW) began trading on the NYSE Arca on September 29, 2011. The new funds strengthen State Street's marketplace leading industry and sector ETF offering, which now includes 44 SPDRs with $58 billion in assets.
The three new SPDR industry ETFs seek to track the performance of a series of S&P Select Industry Indices, which are designed to measure the performance of Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS(R)) sub-industries, the most detailed level of industry definition. Constituent stocks are members of the S&P Total Market Index, which includes all common equities listed on the NYSE and NASDAQ US exchanges.
"Having pioneered the first sector ETFs in 1998, State Street Global Advisors continues to work closely with investors and advisors to develop new SPDR ETFs that provide precise exposure to a range of industries and sectors," said James Ross, senior managing director and global head of SPDR Exchange Traded Funds at State Street Global Advisors. "By offering diversified, cost-efficient access to the aerospace and defense, health care services, and software and services sub-industries, these three new SPDR ETFs provide investors with an opportunity to gain tactical exposure without taking on the risk of buying an individual stock."
The three new SPDR ETFs include:
ETF Name Ticker Index Description Expense Ratio
--------------------------------- ------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------
SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF XAR The S&P Aerospace & Defense Select Index is an equal-weighted index 0.35%
that includes 34 manufacturers of civil or military aerospace and
defense equipment, parts or products, including defense electronics
and space equipment.
--------------------------------- ------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------
SPDR S&P Health Care Services ETF XHS The S&P Health Care Services Select Index is an equal-weighted index 0.35%
that includes 57 providers of patient health care services,
including dialysis centers, lab testing services, pharmacy
management services, and companies providing business support
services to health care providers.
--------------------------------- ------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------
SPDR S&P Software & Services ETF XSW The S&P Computer Software Select Index is an equal-weighted index 0.35%
that includes 112 companies engaged in the research, design, support
production, or distribution of products or processes that relate to
software applications, software and internet systems, and
information-based services.
--------------------------------- ------ -------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------
State Street manages more than $266** billion in SPDR ETF assets worldwide (as of June 30, 2011) and is one of the largest ETF providers in the US and globally.
Source: State Street Corporation
US second-quarter growth revised up to 1.3%
September 29, 2011---The US economy grew slightly more than previously reported in the second quarter, helped by consumer spending and export growth that was stronger than earlier estimated, according to a government report on Thursday that pointed to slow growth rather than a recession.
Gross domestic product grew at annual rate of 1.3 percent, the Commerce Department said in its third and final estimate for the quarter, up from the previously estimated 1.0 percent.
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Source: The Economic Times
Horizons Exchange Traded Funds Launches 2 New Advisor Class ETFs
September 29, 2011--Horizons Exchange Traded Funds Inc. and its affiliate AlphaPro Management Inc., are pleased to announce the launch of Advisor Classes for two of its ETFs.
The Advisor Classes are a new class of our existing ETFs. Advisors will be directly compensated with a service fee on a trailing quarterly basis (the "Service Fee"). The only difference between the Adviser Classes and existing Class E units of our ETFs is that the Adviser Classes charge higher management fees that include the Service Fees paid to the advisor. The purchase and sale process for the Advisor Classes is identical to that of any other ETF listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
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Source: Jovian Capital Corporation.
Horizons BetaPro Further Increases Stake in Australian ETFs Company
September 29, 2011--Horizons Exchange Traded Funds Inc. and its affiliate BetaPro Management Inc., the manager of the Horizons BetaPro exchange traded funds ("Horizons ETFs"), are pleased to announce that BetaPro has exercised its pre-emptive rights to increase its equity ownership stake in BetaShares Holdings Pty Ltd. ("BetaShares") by up to 6.1% for a subscription price of $2,000,000 (Australian).
BetaShares is a private Australian holding company whose subsidiary, BetaShares Capital Limited, offers exchange traded funds ("ETFs") on the Australian Securities
As at August 31, 2011 , BetaPro owned approximately 40% of BetaShare's equity outstanding. As part of the subscription, BetaPro has entered into an option agreement with BetaShares entitling BetaPro (the "Option") to purchase additional shares of BetaShares sufficient to bring BetaPro's equity holdings of BetaShares to 50%.
Adam Felesky, Chairman of Horizons ETFs said, "The continued growth and success of the BetaShares ETFs on the Australian Exchange is very encouraging. Increasing our investment in BetaShares is one more positive step for Horizons ETFs in growing its global ETF presence."
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Source: Jovian Capital Corporation.
SEC Staff Issues Risk Alert on Master/Sub-account Risks
September 29, 2011--The staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission today issued a Risk Alert warning of significant concerns regarding trading through sub-accounts, and offered suggestions to help securities industry firms address those risks.
Money laundering, insider trading, market manipulation, account intrusions, unregistered broker-dealer activity, and excessive leverage are all potential risks associated with the master/sub-account trading model, according to the alert. Customers who open master accounts with a registered broker-dealer usually subdivide it for use by individual traders or groups of traders. In some instances, the sub-accounts may be divided to such an extent that the master account customer and the firm where the account is held might not know the identity of the traders in the sub-accounts.
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Source: SEC.gov
SEC to Hold Roundtable on Conflict Minerals
September 29, 2011---The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it will host a public roundtable next month to discuss the agency’s required rulemaking under Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which relates to reporting requirements regarding conflict minerals originating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and adjoining countries.
The event will take place on October 18 from 12:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. and will provide a forum for various stakeholders to exchange views and provide input on issues related to the SEC’s required rulemaking. The panel discussions will focus on key regulatory issues such as appropriate reporting approaches for the final rule, challenges in tracking conflict minerals through the supply chain, and workable due diligence and other requirements related to the rulemaking.
“We are committed to writing an effective rule as soon as possible, and the roundtable will help us do that,” said Meredith Cross, Director of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance.
Roundtable panelists are expected to reflect the views of different constituencies, including affected issuers, human rights organizations, and other stakeholders. A final agenda including a list of participants will be announced closer to the date of the roundtable.
The roundtable will be held in the auditorium at the SEC’s headquarters at 100 F Street NE in Washington D.C. The roundtable will be open to the public with seating on a first-come, first-served basis, and the discussion also can be viewed via live webcast on the SEC website.
Source: SEC.gov
SEC to Hold Roundtable on Conflict Minerals
September 29, 2011---The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it will host a public roundtable next month to discuss the agency’s required rulemaking under Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which relates to reporting requirements regarding conflict minerals originating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and adjoining countries.
The event will take place on October 18 from 12:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. and will provide a forum for various stakeholders to exchange views and provide input on issues related to the SEC’s required rulemaking. The panel discussions will focus on key regulatory issues such as appropriate reporting approaches for the final rule, challenges in tracking conflict minerals through the supply chain, and workable due diligence and other requirements related to the rulemaking.
“We are committed to writing an effective rule as soon as possible, and the roundtable will help us do that,” said Meredith Cross, Director of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance.
Roundtable panelists are expected to reflect the views of different constituencies, including affected issuers, human rights organizations, and other stakeholders. A final agenda including a list of participants will be announced closer to the date of the roundtable.
The roundtable will be held in the auditorium at the SEC’s headquarters at 100 F Street NE in Washington D.C. The roundtable will be open to the public with seating on a first-come, first-served basis, and the discussion also can be viewed via live webcast on the SEC website.
Source: SEC.gov
Fee Rate Advisory #4 for Fiscal Year 2012
September 29, 2011--Congress is currently working on legislation to fund the Securities and Exchange Commission for the first several weeks of FY 2012, which begins on Oct. 1. However, regardless of the outcome of this work, the fees paid under Section 31 of the Securities Exchange Act will remain at their current rate until 60 days after the enactment of a regular appropriation for the Commission.
Under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Commission will be required to publish a revised fee rate 30 days after the Commission’s regular appropriation for FY 2012 is enacted, and this new fee rate will become effective 60 days after the appropriation is enacted. Until this time, the Section 31 fee rate will remain at the current rate of $19.20 per million. The Section 31 assessment on round turn transactions in security futures also will remain at $0.0042 per transaction.
The Office of Interpretation and Guidance in the Commission’s Division of Trading and Markets is available for questions on Section 31 at (202) 551-5777 or by e-mail at tradingandmarkets@sec.gov.
The Commission will issue further notices as appropriate to keep the public informed of developments relating to the effective dates of the fee rates under Section 31. These notices will be posted at the SEC’s website.
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Source: SEC.gov
