U.S. Bancorp Enters Arena

By Ron DeLegge

March 26, 2012 at 08:00 PM

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The ETF marketplace is getting ready for another new face: U.S. Bancorp Fund Services.

The institution will be teaming up with another company, Exchange Traded Concepts (ETC), to introduce an exchange-traded fund multiple series trust (MST). AlphaClone and Zacks Investment Research will be the first two investment firms to sponsor funds for the trust.

"The ETF MST is a new concept in the industry that enables investment advisors to build awareness and recognition for their brand as a private-label ETF and launch an ETF in approximately 75 days for a minimal initial investment," said Eric Falkeis, officer of ETF Series Solutions (ESS) and chief financial officer of U.S. Bancorp Fund Services. "The teams at U.S. Bancorp and Exchange Trade Concepts provide the operational and regulatory experience, plus the industry contacts needed to navigate the complexities of launching and managing an ETF."

The advantage to funds using the shared trust within the ETC platform is the significant decrease in the cost and time associated with launching an ETF. The shared trust model also provides the necessary ETF back office operations to both launch and administer the ETF, enabling sponsors to focus on investment management and marketing their ETFs.

Although each fund will be responsible for fund-specific expenses, certain expenses are shared by all funds in the Trust, including general legal services, Board of Trustees costs, insurance, and the Trust's Chief Compliance Officer.

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