Stockholm (NordSIP) – UBS has launched the new Euro Area Liquid Corporate Sustainable UCITS ETF – USD-Hedged, a new currency-hedged share class for its ETF tracking euro-zone corporate bonds issued by firms with strong ESG credentials.
The launch of this currency-hedged ETF was supported by strong demand from investors. “We have seen strong inflows in the Euro Area Liquid Corporate Sustainable (EUR) in the past two months. Additionally, we have investors who asked us specifically for a dollar-denominated share class on this ETF for their US$portfolios,” says Florian Cisana, Head UBS Passive and ETF Specialist Sales Strategic Markets. “The ETF has just surpassed the US$1 billion mark recently and currently stands at US$1.178 billion. It attracted demand from all types of investors, but the majority of the assets come from institutional investors.”
The UBS ETF Euro Area Liquid Corporate Sustainable UCITS ETF (in USD hedged) replicates the Bloomberg Barclays MSCI Euro Area Liquid Corporates Sustainable hedged to USD Index. It replicates the Bloomberg Barclays MSCI Euro Area Liquid Corporates Sustainable Total Return. The UBS ETF Euro Area Liquid Corporate Sustainable UCITS ETF (in EUR) has an annual management fee of 0.20%. The USD hedged class on this ETF has a management fee of 0.25% per year.
ESG credentials are assessed on the basis of the MSCI sustainability ratings system. Inclusion in the fund requires an ESG rating no lower than BBB. Firms in the to alcohol, gambling, tobacco, weapons, pornography, and GMO industries are automatically excluded from the ETF.
The fund is passively managed. Matthias Dettwiler, Head of Index Fixed Income since 2012, is in charge of this ETF. Prior to this role, he headed the FX and Global Bonds team and was responsible for implementing active and passive global bond strategies. He has been with UBS since 1995 and joined fixed income portfolio management in 2000.
The fund is listed on SIX Swiss Exchange, the London Stock Exchange, Xetra, and Borsa Italiana.
Image by Claudia Beyli from Pixabay
