BetaShares has launched a currency-hedged version of its Global Quality Leaders exchange-traded fund (ETF), with currency-hedged versions of two more of its international ETFs to follow.
BetaShares chief executive Alex Vynokur said: “Currency movements are notoriously difficult to predict and recent exchange rate volatility illustrates that currency exposure can often be a key driver of investment returns.
“We are broadening our range of currency-hedged ETFs in response to significant client demand as many investors are looking to substantially remove the currency variable from the investment equation.”
In addition to Global Quality Leaders ETF – Currency Hedged, BetaShares plans to launch currency-hedged versions of its Global Sustainability Leaders ETF and NASDAQ 100 ETF.
“The unhedged versions of these three ETFs have been among our most successful funds, with over $1.5 billion in assets between them, and the indices that the funds aim to track all significantly outperform broad share market benchmarks over the long-term to date,” Vynokur added.
“The new currency-hedged funds give investors a choice – to remain exposed to exchange rate movements as another source of potential returns or to seek to minimise the impact of currency fluctuations.”
In related news, the “BetaShares Australian ETF Review” for May found the Australian ETF industry recovered during April and May despite the economic uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The industry report revealed funds under management (FUM) increased by $2.7 billion to $64 billion by the end of May, compared to FUM of $66 billion at the end of January.
In May, a similar report on the sector from ETF Securities revealed ETFs were performing at “all-time highs” despite the market turmoil caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last week, investment manager iShares released two new fixed income ETFs into the market aimed at providing investors access to high-quality Australian investment-grade corporate bonds in a cost-effective manner.
