Maybank Asset Management Thailand (Maybank AM Thailand) had announced the delisting of three of its exchange-traded funds (ETFs) – the Maybank Emerging ETF, the Maybank Euro ETF and the Maybank Japan ETF – from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), according to an announcement from the local bourse.
Responding to an enquiry from Asia Asset Management, Maybank Asset Management (Malaysia) explains: “Since the liquidity of the funds has been relatively low, and due to changes in the business investment direction, Maybank AM Thailand deems it is appropriate – for the benefit of the unitholders – to propose for the dissolution of the fund.”
Listed since December 15, 2014, the Maybank Emerging ETF tracks the MSCI Emerging Markets Index; the Maybank Euro ETF tracks the MSCI EMU Index; whereas the Maybank Japan ETF tracks the MSCI Japan Index. Since inception, the funds have gathered approximately 26.64 million baht (US$744,776.61), 32.08 million baht and 36.83 million baht, respectively.
According to the SET, the prohibition of trading for the ETFs will occur from June 7-10, 2016. The ETFs will be delisted on June 11, and the fund terminated on June 15, which will then see the fund’s assets liquidated to unitholders.
Japan and most countries in the eurozone have had a lacklustre-to-poor stock market performance in 2016 so far, with similar Japanese and European funds also closing their shutters earlier this year.
Among others, the Maxis Nikkei 225 Index ETF – a large cap Japan equity fund brought to the market by Precidian Funds in July 2011 – was closed after failing to gain traction. Additionally, financial services company ALPS shuttered four of its funds, one being the ALPS STOXX Europe 600 ETF, which tracked a cap-weighted index of mostly large- and mid-cap securities from developed European countries.
