Koma To

ETF usage plateaus among brokerage advisors
Mutual fund usage among dealer advisors remains high, but fell between 2021 and 2022

Mutual funds have constituted the vast majority of dealer advisors’ product-based gross revenues since 2018, but have consistently placed second to individual equities for brokerage advisors.

ETFs cracked 10% of brokerage advisors’ revenues in 2020, but have plateaued since. In 2022, ETFs rose to 3.7% of dealer advisors’ product-based revenues, up from 3.2% in 2021.

But not every dealer advisor has access to ETFs.

“The ability to offer ETFs needs to happen,” said a dealer advisor in Ontario. (This may change once the new self-regulatory organization launches.)

Advisors in the retail bank channel also expressed an interest in ETFs.

“I would love to have more access to ETFs. It allows us to put better portfolios in place. You can’t really compete if you don’t have access to everything,” said a retail bank advisor in Ontario.

Below is a look at advisors’ product-based gross revenue over the past five Dealers’ and Brokerage Report Cards.

Oil drops as more rate hikes overshadow tightening fuel market

Oil fell after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said interest rates will go higher than earlier projected, overshadowing tightening supply.

West Texas Intermediate futures dropped below US$89 a barrel after rising four per cent over the previous two sessions. Powell said it's “very premature to be thinking about pausing” after the Fed hiked rates again by 75 basis points. The dollar jumped, making commodities priced in the currency less attractive.

States where investors have the least interest in cryptocurrencies

Digital assets seemed to stabilize in October after sliding for months in what was dubbed “crypto winter.” The flagship cryptocurrency, bitcoin, gained 5.5% in October to end the month at around $20,374, which is far below its high of close to $70,000 in November 2021, but up from the low of $18,454 seen earlier in October.

Crypto’s volatility doesn’t seem to have killed the interest in this asset class, but investors in some states are much less interested in cryptocurrencies than others.

Crypto site Bitstacker.com analyzed Google Trends data on various search terms related to digital assets, including bitcoin, Ethereum and NFT, in all 50 states, scored each state on its residents’ interest in each search term, and then gave them an overall score for their interest in cryptocurrencies.

Click through to see the 10 states whose residents have the least interest in crypto, as well as which crypto terms individuals in those states are searching for online.

Impax Asset Management has launched the Impax Listed Infrastructure fund, investing in listed sustainable infrastructure companies.
The carbon intensity of its holdings is expected to be significantly lower in comparison to traditional infrastructure portfolios and indices.

Holding an Article 9 rating it has revenue alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goals six, seven, nine, eleven and twelve.

The fund is based on Impax's Active Sustainable Infrastructure strategy, investing in the transition to a more sustainable economy.

Do you have to be ‘woke’ to be an ESG investor?

Larry Fink’s annual letter to CEOs caused a stir this year with his assertion that while BlackRock partakes in sustainability and social justice work, it is neither an environmentalist nor is it “woke.” This episode focuses on intention vs. action in the ESG movement and whether it’s important to be an idealist to successfully execute these practices. Rachel Robasciotti, founder and CEO of Adasina Social Capital, joins Steve to discuss these points and more. Do you have to be woke to invest in ESG? The answer might surprise you.

Investment

At the moment, shares of Canadian Turquoise Hill Resources rose 25.7% to $29.32. As of 19:45 Moscow time, the paper rolled back to $29.06. This is evidenced by the trading data of the NYSE stock exchange.

Shares rose on news that mining and metals company Rio Tinto has upgraded its offer to acquire a 49% stake in Turquoise Hill Resources for $400 million to $3.1 billion in cash. Reuters writes that as part of the new offer, minority shareholders of Turquoise Hill Resources will receive 40 Canadian dollars ($31) per share.

The deal also includes the Exxon Silvertip pipeline, Exxon Mobil's stake in the Yellowstone pipeline, and Wyoming-based Yellowstone Energy LP, Exxon said.

The price of the deal, which is expected to close in the second quarter, could increase after the valuation of hydrocarbons and other reserves, Par Pacific said.

Exxon's refinery, located in Billings, Montana, is capable of processing 63,000 barrels of crude oil per day and processes low-cost crudes from Western Canada and the Rocky Mountain region, Par Pacific reported.

“This acquisition expands our fully integrated downstream network in the Western United States,” said Par Pacific chief executive William Pate.

Par Pacific expects to finance the acquisition with cash and resources from existing credit lines.

PT Global Digital Niaga sold the shares for Rs 450 each, people familiar with the deal said. About 11.2 billion shares were sold at prices ranging from Rs 410 to Rs 460 per share. The company has an option to sell up to 17.8 billion shares, depending on investor demand.

Cusumo Martanto, chief executive officer of Global Digital Niaga, declined to comment.

Niaga's IPO is the largest in Jakarta after tech company PT GoTo Gojek Tokopedia Tbk raised $959 million in an April listing. Since then, the Indonesian bourse has not made any new sales of shares worth more than $100 million, as the number of transactions around the world fell sharply amid a surge in volatility, high inflation and rising rates.