BlackRock Launches TIPS ETF Suite

Why it matters: BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager, with more than $9.4 trillion in assets under management as of June. Its iShares offering of more than 1,300 ETFs had $3.21 trillion in AUM as of June, and the iBonds ETF franchise comprises 47 funds with $23 billion in AUM.

What to know: The new TIPS suite is the industry's first TIPS defined-maturity bond ETFs, BlackRock says.

• Each ETF provides regular interest payments and distributes a final payout in its maturity year.
• The iBond ETFs are designed to mature like a bond, trade like a stock and diversify like a fund, and make bond laddering simpler, according to BlackRock.
• The suite provides advisors with new tools to help clients manage inflation and interest-rate risk, the firm says.  "The TIPS iBonds ETF suite provides advisors a new way to navigate this higher-for-longer rate environment while simultaneously providing investors a way to manage inflation risk and access yield," Karen Veraa, who heads the U.S. iShares fixed income strategy at BlackRock, said in a statement.
• All 10 new iShares iBonds TIPS ETFs carry a 0.10% expense ratio. Their tickers range alphabetically from IBIA to IBIJ.

Looking ahead: BlackRock is one of several firms seeking regulatory approval to offer a spot bitcoin ETF. The firm is expected to report its quarterly earnings around Oct. 12.