Metaverse-focused Exchange Traded Fund
According to an article published in the Financial Times today, Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), the UK’s largest asset manager, is the third big provider to establish an exchange-traded fund (EFT) in the same week with a focus on the metaverse for European-based investors, following similar offerings from Franklin Templeton and Fidelity International. Measuring against the iStoxx Access Metaverse Index, the metaverse ETF has a total expense ratio of 0.39 percent.
Franklin Templeton’s metaverse-focused ETF, on the other hand, has a total expense ratio of just 0.3 percent compared to Fidelity International’s ongoing charges figure of 0.5 percent.
The new L&G Metaverse ESG Exclusions Ucits ETF is one of four Dublin-domiciled ETFs that the asset management arm of insurer Legal & General listed in London, Frankfurt, Milan and Zurich on September 7.
The move into the metaverse is Legal & General IM’s newly created Access range of ETFs, while the L&G Optical Technology & Photonics ESG Exclusions (the first of its kind in Europe), L&G Emerging Cyber Security ESG Exclusions and L&G Global Thematic ESG Exclusions Ucits vehicles sit within the firm’s flagship thematic range.
The new Access range aims to “provide exposures that are designed to serve as a tactical or strategic tool for investors seeking access to non-traditional investment opportunities”, said Legal & General in a statement.
Investment Strategies
While continuing, it had “identified multiple investment opportunities related to the development still required, across hardware provision, software advances, networks and digital payments to augment human policing of the metaverse”.
LGIM added its three new strategies combine “active research and rules-based transparent implementation to create custom thematic indices that aim to offer investors purer exposure to themes and underlying positions that are differentiated from traditional portfolios.”
“Thematic investment strategies have seen strong investor interest over recent years, thanks to their ability to capitalize on structural and foundational changes in the way we live and work,” said Aanand Venkatramanan, head of ETFs for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at LGIM, before adding: “Three of the funds launched today capture some of the most innovative and disruptive companies shaping global economies, while the Global Thematic fund will seek to allow investors to gain exposure to multiple themes, in an easily accessible format.”
On LGIM’s new Optical Technology & Photonics ESG Exclusions ETF, Venkatramanan highlighted the fact LGIM had been “at the forefront” of investing in cyber security since it launched Europe’s first ETF focused on this theme back in 2015.
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