Peter Smith
⬤ New figures on systematic trend products show where almost $18 billion sits across funds that charge between 0.2 % and 3.5 %. Managed-futures ETFs cost more than plain index funds - yet they still let retail investors pay far less than they would for mutual funds or for old style limited partnerships that follow the same rules.
⬤ The data tell a clear tale. At a fee of about 1.0 %, the funds together hold roughly $4 billion. Raise the fee to 1.5 % plus the total rises to about $7 billion. Step up to 2.0 % and the tally moves above $10 billion. The sharpest rise occurs between 2.3 % but also 2.8 %; there the figure leaps toward $16 - 18 billion and then levels off.
Managed-futures ETFs still charge retail investors less than comparable mutual funds as well as traditional LP structures.
⬤ The pattern lines up once you look at the price tags - those ETFs do not match the rock bottom cost of a broad index fund - yet they undercut most mutual funds that follow similar rules and they leave the classic 2-and-20 partnership far behind. That gap in price keeps money moving into funds at every listed fee level.
⬤ The lesson is simple - price counts, even in alternative strategies. As more retail investors learn about systematic trend methods, the lower fees inside the ETF wrapper steer where cash flows. With $18 billion already spread across the fee scale, investors want those strategies or they cast their votes with cash after they check the price tag.
Peter Smith
