Deutsche Asset & WM Rolls Out Three Currency-Hedged Equity ETFs

Anna Hallissey

24 January 2014

Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management has added three currency-hedged equity exchange-traded funds, including one in South Korea, to its collection. It now has 11 currency-hedged ETFs on its db X-tracker platform.

The new funds follow a demand from investors for products to help them manage exposure to currency risk in their international investments, said Martin Kremenstein, head of private asset management.

The three db X-tracker hedged equity funds represent Mexico, South Korea and All World excluding US respectively. Deutsche chose these regions where the management of currency risk “can strengthen a global equity portfolio,” according to Kremenstein.

The db X-trackers MSCI South Korea Hedged Equity Fund, Deutsche said, gives investors access to the South Korean equity market, while managing exposure to what has recently been a volatile Korean won.

Meanwhile, the db X-trackers MSCI Mexico Hedged Equity Fund will offer the opportunity to access another major emerging Latin American economy while hedging the currency risk and reducing the impact of fluctuations between the Mexican peso, relative to the US dollar.

2013 was a strong year for ETFs; the global market for it combined with exchange-traded products hit a record-high of $2.4 trillion .

The ETFs will track currency-hedged equity indexes from MSCI, a global foreign equity benchmark, and are listed for trading on the NYSE Arca.