IShares
Encyclopedia
iShares are a family of exchange-traded fund
s (ETFs) managed by BlackRock
. The first iShares were known as WEBS but were since rebranded.
Each iShares fund tracks a bond
or stock
market index. The following stock exchanges list iShares funds: London Stock Exchange
, American Stock Exchange
, New York Stock Exchange
, Hong Kong Stock Exchange
, Toronto Stock Exchange
, Australian Securities Exchange
and several European and Asian stock exchanges. iShares is the largest issuer of ETFs in the US and globally.
, had launched Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts
(now the 'SPDR S&P 500'), which were traded in real time and tracked the S&P 500
index. This was the first ETF
to trade in the United States
, and it continues to trade to this day.
In response, Morgan Stanley
launched a series of ETFs called WEBS that tracked its MSCI foreign stock market indices. WEBS, an acronym for World Equity Benchmark Shares, were developed in cooperation with Barclays Global Investors, the fund manager. Unlike the SPDR fund that was a unit investment trust
, the underlying vehicle of the WEBS were mutual fund
s.
In 2000, Barclays put a significant strategic effort behind growing the ETF market, and launched over 40 new funds with an extensive education and marketing effort behind them, branding them iShares. The effort was led by Lee Kranefuss
, who worked closely with the inventor of the ETF
, Nate Most, who was by that time Chairman of the WEBs Board and an adviser to Barclays on the iShares effort. (Most had retired from the American Stock Exchange
some years earlier and settled in California). WEBS were soon renamed the iShares MSCI Series as part of that program.
On November 7, 2006, iShares announced the purchase of the INDEXCHANGE ETF unit of HypoVereinsbank
for €240 million. This solidified the iShares position in Europe as the leading ETF provider.
Barclays added currency hedging features to the Canadian iShares, to distinguish them from US products in response to the elimination of limits on foreign holdings by Canadians in an RRSP. Barclays hedges currency changes in the Canadian - US exchange rate for the S&P 500 and the MSCI EAFE.
On 16 March 2009 Barclays confirmed that it was planning to sell iShares to CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm that had agreed to pay more than $4 billion. However, under a 45-day "go shop" clause, a later bid by BlackRock
was announced on June 11, 2009 for the whole of the parent division Barclays Global Investors including iShares, in a mixed cash-stock deal worth around $13.5 billion (37.8 million shares of common stock and $6.6 billion in cash).
Exchange-traded fund
An exchange-traded fund is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. An ETF holds assets such as stocks, commodities, or bonds, and trades close to its net asset value over the course of the trading day. Most ETFs track an index, such as the S&P 500 or MSCI EAFE...
s (ETFs) managed by BlackRock
BlackRock
BlackRock, Inc. is an American multinational investment management corporation and the world's largest asset manager. BlackRock is headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States and is the leading provider of investment, advisory, and risk management solutions...
. The first iShares were known as WEBS but were since rebranded.
Each iShares fund tracks a bond
Bond market index
A bond market index is a composite listing of bonds or fixed income instruments and a statistic reflecting the composite value of its components...
or stock
Stock market index
A stock market index is a method of measuring a section of the stock market. Many indices are cited by news or financial services firms and are used as benchmarks, to measure the performance of portfolios such as mutual funds....
market index. The following stock exchanges list iShares funds: London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
, American Stock Exchange
American Stock Exchange
NYSE Amex Equities, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX was a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was known as the New York Curb Exchange. On January 17, 2008, NYSE Euronext announced it would acquire the...
, New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
, Hong Kong Stock Exchange
Hong Kong Stock Exchange
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in Hong Kong. It is Asia's third largest stock exchange in terms of market capitalization behind the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange and fifth largest in the world...
, Toronto Stock Exchange
Toronto Stock Exchange
Toronto Stock Exchange is the largest stock exchange in Canada, the third largest in North America and the seventh largest in the world by market capitalisation. Based in Canada's largest city, Toronto, it is owned by and operated as a subsidiary of the TMX Group for the trading of senior equities...
, Australian Securities Exchange
Australian Securities Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
and several European and Asian stock exchanges. iShares is the largest issuer of ETFs in the US and globally.
History
In 1993, State Street, in cooperation with American Stock ExchangeAmerican Stock Exchange
NYSE Amex Equities, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX was a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was known as the New York Curb Exchange. On January 17, 2008, NYSE Euronext announced it would acquire the...
, had launched Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts
Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts
The Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts were launched by Boston asset manager SSgA State Street Global Advisors on January 29, 1993 as the first exchange-traded fund in the United States ; and are part of the SPDRs ETF chain.Designed and developed by American Stock Exchange executives Nathan Most...
(now the 'SPDR S&P 500'), which were traded in real time and tracked the S&P 500
S&P 500
The S&P 500 is a free-float capitalization-weighted index published since 1957 of the prices of 500 large-cap common stocks actively traded in the United States. The stocks included in the S&P 500 are those of large publicly held companies that trade on either of the two largest American stock...
index. This was the first ETF
Exchange-traded fund
An exchange-traded fund is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. An ETF holds assets such as stocks, commodities, or bonds, and trades close to its net asset value over the course of the trading day. Most ETFs track an index, such as the S&P 500 or MSCI EAFE...
to trade in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and it continues to trade to this day.
In response, Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is a global financial services firm headquartered in New York City serving a diversified group of corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals. Morgan Stanley also operates in 36 countries around the world, with over 600 offices and a workforce of over 60,000....
launched a series of ETFs called WEBS that tracked its MSCI foreign stock market indices. WEBS, an acronym for World Equity Benchmark Shares, were developed in cooperation with Barclays Global Investors, the fund manager. Unlike the SPDR fund that was a unit investment trust
Unit Investment Trust
A Unit Investment Trust is a US investment company offering a fixed portfolio of securities having a definite life. UITs are assembled by a sponsor and sold through brokers to investors.-Types:...
, the underlying vehicle of the WEBS were mutual fund
Mutual fund
A mutual fund is a professionally managed type of collective investment scheme that pools money from many investors to buy stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, and/or other securities.- Overview :...
s.
In 2000, Barclays put a significant strategic effort behind growing the ETF market, and launched over 40 new funds with an extensive education and marketing effort behind them, branding them iShares. The effort was led by Lee Kranefuss
Lee Kranefuss
Lee Thomas Kranefuss is an American businessman, investment manager, corporate adviser and entrepreneur.Kranefuss started and ran the iShares series of exchange-traded funds for Barclays Global Investors , the asset management arm of Britain’s Barclays Bank. BGI was acquired by BlackRock in...
, who worked closely with the inventor of the ETF
ETF
ETF may refer to:* Exchange-traded fund, an investment vehicle* European Training Foundation, a vocational training organization* European Transport Workers' Federation* Emergency Task Force, a tactical unit of the Toronto Police* Enriched text format...
, Nate Most, who was by that time Chairman of the WEBs Board and an adviser to Barclays on the iShares effort. (Most had retired from the American Stock Exchange
American Stock Exchange
NYSE Amex Equities, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange is an American stock exchange situated in New York. AMEX was a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was known as the New York Curb Exchange. On January 17, 2008, NYSE Euronext announced it would acquire the...
some years earlier and settled in California). WEBS were soon renamed the iShares MSCI Series as part of that program.
On November 7, 2006, iShares announced the purchase of the INDEXCHANGE ETF unit of HypoVereinsbank
HypoVereinsbank
UniCredit Bank Aktiengesellschaft is the sixth-largest private German financial institution, with a strong presence in Bavaria. The company is based in Munich, and together with Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, Commerzbank and Deutsche Postbank, it belongs to the Cash Group...
for €240 million. This solidified the iShares position in Europe as the leading ETF provider.
Barclays added currency hedging features to the Canadian iShares, to distinguish them from US products in response to the elimination of limits on foreign holdings by Canadians in an RRSP. Barclays hedges currency changes in the Canadian - US exchange rate for the S&P 500 and the MSCI EAFE.
On 16 March 2009 Barclays confirmed that it was planning to sell iShares to CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm that had agreed to pay more than $4 billion. However, under a 45-day "go shop" clause, a later bid by BlackRock
BlackRock
BlackRock, Inc. is an American multinational investment management corporation and the world's largest asset manager. BlackRock is headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States and is the leading provider of investment, advisory, and risk management solutions...
was announced on June 11, 2009 for the whole of the parent division Barclays Global Investors including iShares, in a mixed cash-stock deal worth around $13.5 billion (37.8 million shares of common stock and $6.6 billion in cash).
External links
- Official US iShares ETF site
- Official UK iShares ETF site
- Official Canadian iShares ETF site
- Official French iShares ETF site
- Official German iShares ETF site
- Official Dutch iShares ETF site
- Official Italian iShares ETF site
- Official Spanish iShares ETF site
- Official Swiss iShares ETF site
- Official Austrian iShares ETF site
- Official Australian iShares ETF site
- Official Mexican iShares ETF site
- Official Chilean iShares ETF site
- Official Brazilian iShares ETF site
- Official Japanese iShares ETF site
- Official Hong Kong iShares ETF site
- Changes to the XSP, XIN Canadian iShares, and the XSB and XRB Canadian iShares