Published on 22 May 2023 on etf.com via Yahoo Finance
Odds & Ends: Vanguard Patent Expires
Fund structure prominently featured in the news last week as Vanguard’s patent on exchange-traded funds as a share class of mutual funds expired Tuesday. However, only one company has applied to the SEC for the same ’40 Act exemption that Vanguard did, as uncertainty over the stipulations the SEC will put on similar exemptions reigns.
An alternative to Vanguard’s structure was highlighted when Global X converted two of its emerging market stock mutual funds to ETFs on Monday, the Global X Emerging Markets Great Consumer ETF (EMC) and the Global X Emerging Markets ETF (EMM). AllianceBernstein also converted a high-yield bond ETF the same day, the AB High Yield ETF (HYFI).