BlackRock Asia bond fund scoops three quarters of Singapore ETF flows
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One BlackRock exchange traded fund accounted for nearly three quarters of net inflows into all ETFs listed on Singapore’s stock exchange last year, as assets in ETFs listed on the Singapore Exchange soared 47 per cent to S$12.55bn ($9.24bn).
The US-based mutual fund giant’s iShares USD Asia High Yield Bond ETF represented S$2.94bn of last year’s overall net ETF inflows of S$4.04bn in the city-state, according to data from the Singapore Exchange.
The inflows came despite the fact that the iShares ETF, which launched in 2011, suffered negative returns of 12.95 per cent in US dollar terms over the year.
The next most attractive fund in terms of inflows was the ICBC CSOP FTSE Chinese Government Bond ETF, which attracted S$316m in new money.
This article was previously published by Ignites Asia, a title owned by the FT Group.
The CSOP ETF, which launched in September last year, quickly became the largest ETF domiciled in the city-state, amassing more than $1bn in assets under management just a month after its inception.
Ranked third was the equities-focused Lion-OCBC Securities Hang Seng Tech ETF, which garnered S$294m.
The number of Singapore-listed ETFs rose from 30 to 35, with 22 of them seeing their assets under management increase in 2021, according to SGX.
SGX said there was increased interest from institutional investors in Asian fixed-income strategies, particularly in regional high-yield bonds and renminbi-denominated Chinese government debt.
Four of the five SGX-listed ETFs that track real estate investment trust indices were among the top 10 local ETFs for inflows.
Last year’s rise in ETF assets follows 2020’s 57 per cent jump, when the coronavirus pandemic drove more investors towards online platforms.
ETF assets account for close to 10 per cent of all mutual fund assets in Singapore.
*Ignites Asia is a news service published by FT Specialist for professionals working in the asset management industry. It covers everything from new product launches to regulations and industry trends. Trials and subscriptions are available at ignitesasia.com.
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