Topic: How To Invest

Q: Hi, Pat. What do you think of Scotiabank’s Strategic ETF portfolios— SFIX, SUSA, SCAD, SINT. Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: In May 2018, Bank of Nova Scotia’s asset-management business, Scotia Global Asset Management, announced the launch of its Scotia Strategic ETF Portfolios. These “smart beta” ETF portfolios include fixed-income, Canadian, U.S. and global equity funds. The four ETF portfolios are the Scotia Strategic Fixed Income ETF Portfolio (SFIX), Scotia Strategic Canadian Equity ETF Portfolio (SCAD), Scotia Strategic U.S. Equity ETF Portfolio (SUSA), and Scotia Strategic International Equity ETF Portfolio (SINT). Strategic smart beta funds, also known as factor-based funds, follow an index, but have portfolio managers who can change their mandates or investment strategies when they feel that it is needed. The Scotia Strategic ETFs are “fund of funds.” Each ETF consists of a portfolio made up of five underlying ETFs selected from various Canadian and U.S. ETF providers. That includes the bank’s own Dynamic iShares ETF series. For example, SCAD includes the iShares Edge MSCI Multifactor Canada Index ETF, the Invesco FTSE RAFI Canadian Index ETF, the iShares Core S&P/TSX Capped Composite…