JOHANNESBURG – Grindrod Bank today announced that its ETF suite, GTrax, and broader passive investment management business will be rebranded CoreShares as part of the firm’s broader push to offer low cost index products and services to the investment market.
“The name ‘CoreShares’ is principally derived from the growing trend to structure an investment portfolio using a Core-Satellite approach,” said Gareth Stobie, head of the new CoreShares franchise. “In our view, index investments should form the majority – or core – of a portfolio, ensuring broad market exposure, reduced costs and lower manager risk.”
CoreShares will offer a range of passive investments in addition to ETFs, which continue to boom globally with circa US$3-trillion under management. Although the local ETF market is still comparatively small, Stobie said it is not unusual for countries to have a slow build up and South Africa is expected to follow global trends.
CoreShares currently has five JSE-listed ETFs across mainly general equity and listed property. It will offer two additional ETFs later this year should an amalgamation agreement entered between CoreShares and Nedgroup Beta Solutions (NBS) in February 2015 get regulatory approval. It is also in the process of listing a Top50 ETF focused on South African equities in partnership with S&P Dow Jones Indices.
“The Top50 ETF together with the NBS suite will broaden the CoreShares offering to eight ETFs,” said Stobie. “Next on the agenda will be the launch of multi-asset solutions.”
According to David Polkinghorne, MD of Grindrod Bank, CoreShares’ identity better reflects the business’s vision to provide easy access to a broader scope of meaningful, low cost investment offerings. The CoreShares team has a wealth of experience in managing innovative investment products in line with global trends and will continue to focus on customers’ needs for cost effective investment solutions.”
