Finalists Announced For 2019 ETF.com Awards
We’re off to the races. After a huge number of nominations across multiple categories, the finalists for the ETF.com Annual ETF Awards are here.
The list of people worthy of achievement awards for their contribution to the ETF industry is nothing short of impressive this year. The U.S. ETF market is entering its 27th year since the launch of the very first fund, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), and along the way, many have stood out as thought leaders, innovators, traders and product experts. This year’s finalists speak to the caliber of folks the ETF industry enlists.
2019 was a big year for ETFs, which had their second biggest asset haul ever in a calendar year, and saw all sorts of exciting innovation extending investor access to interesting areas of the market.
Finalists for the 2019 awards are listed below and include best-in-class ETFs across asset classes as well as issuers who’ve stood out amid a growing number of fund providers. There’s even a selection of creative trading symbols for the best new ETF ticker, because that’s just downright fun. (Please note that Service Provider awards are still in the nomination process; more details below.)
The nomination period closed Jan. 4, and award winners will be announced in March. More details on that event coming soon. Stay tuned.
Before we get to the finalists, a quick recap about the awards:
Methodology
ETF.com Award winners are selected in a three-part process designed to leverage the insights and opinions of leaders throughout the ETF industry.
Step 1
The awards process begins with open nominations, which ran from Dec. 4, 2019, to Jan. 4, 2020. Self-nominations are accepted. Nominators may nominate in as many categories as they like. You cannot win if you are not nominated, and no nominations will be accepted after the deadline. There are no exceptions to these rules.
Step 2
Following the open nominations process, the ETF.com Awards Nominating Committee—made up of ETF.com editorial staff—reviews nominations. Nominations are screened for eligibility (appropriate timing and category). If more than five unique entries are received in the nominations process, the members of the Nominating Committee will force-rank their top five, resulting in a final slate for each category. Votes will be resolved on a majority basis, and ties broken where possible with head-to-head runoff votes. If ties cannot be broken, more than five finalists are allowed. The Nomination Committee will complete its work by Jan. 10, 2020. Shortly thereafter, the nominees will be published on ETF.com.
Step 3
Winners among these finalists will be selected by a majority vote of the ETF.com Awards Selection Committee, a group of independent ETF experts from across the ETF community. Committee members will recuse themselves from voting in any category in which they or their firms appear as finalists. Ties will be decided where possible with head-to-head runoff votes. Voting will be complete by Jan. 31, 2019, but results will be kept confidential until they are announced in March, and published in the April ETF Report. Details about the awards event will be forthcoming.
2019 Awards Selection Committee: ETFs & Issuers
Kim Arthur, Main Management
Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg Intelligence
Ben Blaisdell, US Trust
John Davi, Astoria Advisors
Emily Doak, Charles Schwab Investment Advisory
Debbie Fuhr, ETFGI
Nate Geraci, ETF Prime/ETF Store
Matt Hougan, Inside ETFs
Ben Johnson, Morningstar
Elisabeth Kashner, FactSet
Ben Lavine, 3D Asset Management
Tom Lydon, ETFtrends.com
Tyler Mordy, Forstrong Global Asset Management
Todd Rosenbluth, CFRA
Dan Weiskopf, ETF Think Tank
ETF AWARD CATEGORIES FOR 2019
(Note: The full description of each award’s criteria is contained in the nomination survey here)
Award Finalists:
Lifetime Achievement Award
Eric Balchunas
Bruce Bond
Reggie Browne
Burton Malkiel
Jan van Eck
ETF of the Year – 2019
Vanguard Total International Bond Index (BNDX)
AGFiQ U.S. Market Neutral Anti-Beta Fund (BTAL)
Innovator Defined Outcome ETF series: BJAN, PJAN, UJAN, EJUL, IJUL, KOCT, NOCT
Alpha Architect U.S. Quantitative Value ETF (QVAL)
iShares ESG MSCI USA Leaders ETF (SUSL)
iShares Edge MSCI Min Vol USA ETF (USMV)
Best New ETF – 2019
JPMorgan BetaBuilders US Equity ETF (BBUS)
Innovator Defined Outcome ETF series: BJAN, PJAN, UJAN, EJUL, IJUL, KOCT, NOCT
Alpha Architect Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM)
Direxion MSCI USA Cyclicals Over Defensives ETF (RWCD)
iShares ESG MSCI USA Leaders ETF (SUSL)
Most Innovative New ETF – 2019
Global X Cloud Computing ETF (CLOU)
Hoya Capital Housing ETF (HOMZ)
Quadratic Interest Rate Volatility Inflation Hedge ETF (IVOL)
Direxion MSCI USA Cyclicals Over Defensives ETF (RWCD)
Best New U.S. Equity ETF – 2019
Avantis U.S. Equity ETF (AVUS)
Innovator Defined Outcome ETF series: BJAN, PJAN, UJAN, KOCT, NOCT
Hoya Capital Housing ETF (HOMZ)
Direxion MSCI USA Cyclicals Over Defensives ETF (RWCD)
iShares ESG MSCI USA Leaders ETF (SUSL)
Best New International/Global Equity ETF – 2019
Alpha Architect Freedom 100 Emerging Market ETF (FRDM)
Pacer Trendpilot International (PTIN)
Direxion MSCI Developed Over Emerging Markets ETF (RWDE)
Amplify International Online Retail ETF (XBUY)
Best New U.S. Fixed-Income ETF – 2019
Goldman Sachs Access Ultra Short Bond ETF (GSST)
iShares iBonds High Yield and Income Suite: IBHA, IBHB, IBHC, IBHD, IBHE
Quadratic Interest Rate Volatility Inflation Hedge ETF (IVOL)
VanEck Vectors Municipal Allocation ETF (MAAX)
Nuveen ESG High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (NUHY)
Best New International/Global Fixed-Income ETF – 2019
Pacific Global Focused High Yield (FJNK)
SP Funds Dow Jones Global Sukuk ETF (SPSK)
Principal Ultra-Short Active Income ETF (USI)
Best New Commodity ETF – 2019
iPath Series B Carbon ETN (GRN)
Best New Alternatives ETF – 2019
Franklin Liberty Systematic Style Premia ETF (FLSP)
RYZZ Managed Futures Strategy Plus ETF (RYZZ)
Best New Asset Allocation ETF – 2019
WisdomTree 90/60 U.S. Balanced Fund (NTSX)
Strategy Shares Newfound/ReSolve Robust Momentum ETF (ROMO)
Virtus Private Credit Strategy (VPC)
Bull-Rider Bear-Fighter ETF (WIZ)
Best New Smart Beta or Factor ETF – 2019
Pacer Emerging Markets Cash Cows 100 ETF (ECOW)
Fidelity Targeted International Factor ETF (FDEV) and Fidelity Targeted Emerging Markets Factor ETF (FDEM)
PIMCO RAFI ESG U.S. ETF (RAFE)
Strategy Shares Newfound/ReSolve Robust Momentum ETF (ROMO)
GraniteShares XOUT US Large Cap ETF (XOUT)
Best New Active ETF – 2019
ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF)
Avantis U.S. Equity ETF (AVUS)
Aware Ultra-Short Duration Enhanced Income ETF (AWTM)
PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active ESG ETF (EMNT)
JPMorgan Core Plus Bond ETF (JCPB)
Thematic ETF of the Year – 2019
Global X Cloud Computing ETF (CLOU)
Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM)
The Goldman Sachs Motif Data-Driven World ETF (GDAT)
VanEck Vectors Green Bond ETF (GRNB)
Best New ESG ETF – 2019
PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active ESG ETF (EMNT)
Alpha Architect Freedom 100 Emerging Market ETF (FRDM)
Nuveen ESG High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (NUHY)
iShares ESG MSCI USA Leaders (SUSL)
Xtrackers MSCI USA ESG Leaders Equity ETF (USSG)
ETF Hidden Gem – 2019
Cambria Emerging Shareholder Yield ETF (EYLD)
Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM)
VanEck Vectors Green Bond ETF (GRNB)
Pacer U.S. Export Leaders ETF (PEXL)
ETF Issuer of the Year – 2019
Global X
Innovator ETFs (Innovator Capital Management)
iShares
J.P. Morgan Asset Management
Vanguard
New ETF Issuer of the Year – 2019
Avantis
Hoya Capital Real Estate
ProcureAM
Syntax Advisors
Tidal ETF Services (SoFi)
Most Innovative ETF Issuer of the Year – 2019
Alpha Architect
ARK Investment Management
Innovator ETFs (Innovator Capital Management)
Tidal ETF Services (SoFi)
Best ETF Issuer Website – 2019
Alpha Architect: www.alphaarchitect.com
ARK Investment Management: www.ark-invest.com / www.ark-funds.com
Fidelity Investments: www.fidelity.com/etf
iShares: www.ishares.com
Vanguard Financial Advisor Services: www.advisors.vanguard.com/advisors-home
New ETF Ticker of the Year – 2019
Pacer Cash Cows Fund of Funds ETF (HERD)
Roundhill BITKRAFT Esports & Digital Entertainment ETF (NERD)
AdvisorShares Pure Cannabis ETF (YOLO)
Service Provider Awards
For 2019, we are establishing a separate set of awards for service providers, with a distinct voting committee.
2019 Awards Selection Committee: Service Providers
1 representative from each issuer
1 representative from each listing exchange
Note: The Voting Committee is currently accepting nominations from the above. Please submit your request for your company’s representative to Stacey Brorup at sbrorup@etf.com.
SERVICE PROVIDER AWARD CATEGORIES FOR 2019
Index Provider of the Year – 2019
Index of the Year – 2019
ETF Liquidity Provider of the Year – 2019
ETF Custodian of the Year – 2019
ETF Law Firm of the Year – 2019
Best Online Broker for ETF-Focused Investors – 2019
Best ETF Platform – 2019
Best ETF Issuer Capital Markets Desk – 2019
ETF Investor of the Year – 2019
Contact Cinthia Murphy at cmurphy@etf.com
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