ETF Launches Jump 17% In February, Closures Fall 46%

In February, the ETF industry saw a 17% increase in newly launched funds compared with the previous month, while the number of closures dropped 46%.

February saw the launch of 35 new ETFs, a 17% increase over the 30 launches in January. Meanwhile the number of ETFs closing fell to 8, a 46% drop from the 15 closures the previous month, according to Morningstar.

As to be expected, highly focused niche funds and crypto-related funds took top billing among the January closures, while a surprising number of dividend-focused ETFs also closed. Its surprising because this seems like a good time for dividend funds, as falling stock prices equal bigger dividend yields.

The funds that closed in January, according to Morningstar:

· Amberwave Invest USA JSG Fund (IUSA)

· Volt Crypto Industry and Equity ETF (BTCR)

· APEX HealthCare ETF (APXH)

· Viridi Bitcoin Miners ETF (RIGZ)

· AXS FOMO ETF (FOMO)

· AXS De-SPAC ETF (DSPC)

· QRAFT AI-Enhanced U.S. High Dividend ETF (HDIV)

· PGIM Quant Solutions Strategic Alpha International Equity ETF (PQIN)

· Capital Link Global Green Energy Transport & Technology Leaders ETF (EKAR)

· IQ S&P High Yield Low Volatility Bond ETF (HYLV)

· IQ Hedge Long/Short Tracker ETF (QLS)

· IQ Hedge Event-Driven Tracker ETF (QED)

· IQ Hedge Market Neutral Tracker ETF (QMN)

· IQ Hedge Macro Tracker ETF (MCRO)

· First Trust Chindia ETF (FNI)

The February closures, according to Morningstar and ETF Think Tank:

ELEMENTS Linked to the MLCX Grains Index ETN (GRU)

ELEMENTS Linked to the MLCX Biofuels Index ETN (FUE)

KFA Large Cap Quality Dividend Index ETF (KLDC)

KFA Small Cap Quality Dividend Index ETF (KSCD)

UBC Algorithmic Fundamentals ETF (UBCB)

iPath® Gold ETN (GBUG)

iPath® S&P MLP ETN (IMLP)

iPath® Silver ETN (SBUG)

For all of 2022, 404 ETFs and 2 ETNs were launched, while 132 ETFs and 13 ETNs were liquidated at the end of February, there were 3,202 U.S.-listed ETFs, including 155 exchange-traded notes (ETNS), which are unsecured debt, instead of securities, according to Morningstar.

During the month of January, total net ETF assets jumped 7% to $6.976 trillion. But in February total assets fell 3% to $6.799 trillion, according to Morningstar.

The asset-weighted average net expense ratio for Equity ETFs is 0.16% vs. 0.44% for equity mutual funds. The asset-weighted average net expense ratio for fixed income ETFs is 0.14 vs. 0.37 for fixed income mutual funds, according to Morningstar.