ETFs are knocking at the US pension door

Having gained widespread acceptance among investment advisers and investors, exchange traded fund providers are now turning their sights to the US retirement plan market

• Gold ETF becomes a US trailblazer
• ETFs ‘surge’ in popularity

Asia’s army of investors rides in

Global fund managers are increasingly aiming new launches at the Asian region and although growth has slowed in the last quarter they still expect the region to drive new growth (PDF)

ETFs ‘surge’ in popularity

European pension funds massively increased their use of exchange traded funds last year – where just 13 per cent of institutional investors used ETFs in 2006, 44 per cent now use the low-cost index trackers, according to Invesco

Gold ETF becomes a US trailblazer

An exchange traded fund that invests in gold bullion has become the most actively traded call option of the CBOE a month after the landmark decision to allow it

Research sheds light on how to diversify

Funds wondering how many alternative asset classes they should add to a portfolio should look at the results of research from Cass Business School

Call to regulate trade in US life policies

The growing trade in US life policies raises ethical and regulatory issues, according to a report from the Pensions Institute at Cass Business School

UK struggles in private equity markets

The UK was the worst performer of the world’s four biggest private equity markets last year, according to research by Ernst & Young

Hedge funds hit troubled banks with a hiring binge

The biggest hedge funds are on a hiring binge, taking advantage of cutbacks at investment banks to recruit star traders, senior executives and whole teams to help them expand