If smart beta ETFs can help investors navigate their way through the ongoing tangle of unfolding political and socioeconomic events then, says Nizam Hamid, this could prove a defining year for the sector
Smart beta is finding itself increasingly front and centre of the passive universe. The sector's annual growth rate has overtaken the wider passive market and this looks set to be sustained for some time as the investment landscape transforms to accommodate shifts - both political and in terms of monetary policy. In Europe, last year, smart beta exchange-traded fund (ETF) assets grew 33% while the broad ETF market grew 14%. If we look at the US market, investors have predominantly traded the Trump election and subsequent rally to record highs via passive strategies mainly focused on pure...
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