FIRST COLOMBIAN ETF TRADES ON NYSE ARCA
The first exchange-traded fund that seeks to replicate the performance of the 20 most-liquid securities in the Colombian market has begun trading on NYSE Arca, an all-electronic US trading platform. Global X Management, a New York-based asset manager, in association with InterBolsa, the leading broker on the Colombian Stock Exchange, introduced the fund, which tracks the FTSE Colombia 20 Index. The index includes companies such as oil firm Ecopetrol, banking group Bancolombia, cement producer Cementos Argos and utility firm InterconexiÛn ElÈctrica.
Global X, a new ETF provider, also has filed prospectuses to list funds on NYSE Arca for Argentina, Egypt, Peru and the Philippines. The company plans to list many of its ETFs locally as well as in international markets.
Colombia’s economy is heavily dependent on exports of oil, coal and coffee. Only two American depositary receipts for Colombia-based companies trade in the US, Ecopetrol and Bancolombia, both of which are listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Global X, which is registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser, plans to focus on ETFs in emerging and frontier markets. Global X also plans a regional fund tracking Nordic countries.
—Gordon Platt
