Correlation Between Assets Under Management & Sponsorship of Exchange Traded Funds

This thesis set out to find whether or not there is a correlation between assets under management (AUM) of institutional investment managers and their sponsorship of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). It first examines the history of how and why ETFs entered the marketplace and how they have evolved over time in use by institutional investors. It then explains the features that make ETFs unique, and which are desirable to investors. Institutional investors can benefit from arbitrage opportunities in the creation redemption process used to bring ETFs to market; however, this paper will assert that the marketability of ETF products and their associated brand recognition contributes to the value of the firms who sponsor them. Finally, this paper will show that between 1993 and 2015, firms who have sponsored ETFs have had a greater growth in AUM than firms who have not sponsored ETFs.