Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
What is an ETF?
An Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is a diversified portfolio of securities constructed using an index approach that can be readily traded on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
Investors in Vanguard ETFs own a share of a portfolio of listed securities, indexed by Vanguard. As an index manager Vanguard’s aim is to deliver the index return, before fees, by building investment portfolios using similar assets and weightings as the benchmark index - we don’t try to pick winners from losers. This means an ETF’s returns, before costs, should closely match the index it tracks, just like a traditional index managed fund.
Vanguard ETFs deliver two sets of benefits to investors - the trading speed and flexibility of shares merged with the low-cost, diversification of index funds. This has made ETFs one of the fastest growing investment solutions in the world today, with hundreds of billions of dollars now invested globally using ETFs.
Australian investors currently have access to both domestic and cross-listed ETFs. Domestic ETFS are funds that have their primary listing on the local exchange (relative to the investor) such as the ASX for Australian investors. Cross-listed ETFs are ETFs that have a listing on a different exchange than their primary or original listing.
More about ETFs
- What are ETFs?
- How do ETFs work?
- ETFs - Fees and costs
- Benefits of Vanguard ETFs
- ETF Introductory Video
- ETF Myths and Misconceptions
- ETF Market Participants
- Choosing between ETFs and traditional index funds
- Buying and selling ETFs
- Using Vanguard ETFs in your portfolio
- Frequently Asked Questions
Find out more
Call Vanguard Client Services on 1300 655 888, 8:00am to 6:00pm, Monday to Friday (Melbourne time) or email us.
