BMO Financial Group, a Canadian financial group in the area of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), has expanded its ETF market with the launch of eight new funds, bringing its product line to a total of 30 ETFs.
The new BMO ETFs, which began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange are: BMO Equal Weight REITs Index ETF (ZRE); BMO Equal Weight US Banks Hedged to CAD Index ETF (ZUB); BMO Equal Weight US Health Care Hedged to CAD Index ETF (ZUH); BMO Junior Oil Index ETF (ZJO); BMO Junior Gas Index ETF (ZJN); BMO Long Federal Bond Index ETF (ZFL); BMO Real Return Bond Index ETF (ZRR) and BMO Emerging Markets Bond Hedged to CAD Index ETF (ZEF).
The new ETFs include three fixed income funds, one of which provides exposure to emerging market bonds. Also highlighted is exposure to oil and gas in the small cap sector, as well as equal weight access to US health care and US banks.
The new roll-out includes three currency-hedged ETFs, to provide investors in Canada access to growth in other countries while mitigating the risk of losses based on foreign exchange volatility.
BMO ETFs are managed and administered by BMO Asset Management (formerly Jones Heward Investment Counsel), a wholly-owned, indirect subsidiary of Bank of Montreal.
Rajiv Silgardo, CEO of BMO Asset Management, said: “These latest additions further diversify our offering in a number of areas, including the health care and oil and gas sectors, allowing Canadian investors the opportunity to capitalize on the ongoing growth in key industries.
“For those in need of cost-efficient hedging solutions, we have added to our currency-hedged ETFs to allow investors to access the growth and diversity of non-Canadian markets without the added volatility often attributed to currency.”