BlackRock set for first mutual fund-to-ETF switch

The ongoing tsunami of mutual fund-to-ETF conversions has finally reached BlackRock.

The world's largest asset manager has bared plans to convert its BlackRock International Dividend Fund, currently holding assets worth over $700 million, into an exchange-traded fund by November.

This shift, which BlackRock revealed in a prospectus supplement filed with the SEC, reflects a growing industry trend where asset managers transition mutual fund assets to ETFs to leverage their lower costs and tax benefits.

Eric Balchunas, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, noted that approximately 70 funds, including offerings from Dimensional Fund Advisors, JPMorgan Asset Management, and Fidelity Investments, have transitioned over $100 billion in mutual fund assets into ETFs.

The wave of conversions underscores a broader investor preference for ETFs due to their enhanced flexibility and investment efficiency.

A recent report from TrackInsight, conducted in partnership with State Street and JPMorgan, found that assets allocated to ETFs reached $11 trillion in 2023, with a notable preference for active ETFs in North America.

“Global investors are telling us they are allocating more to active ETFs, would be more apt to purchase a strategy if it was converted from a mutual fund to ETF, and would like to see global regulators enable a listed ETF as a share class of an unlisted fund,” Francis Koudelka, senior vice president & global etf product specialist at State Street said at the time.

Recent data from the Investment Company Institute, as compiled by Bloomberg, indicates significant capital movements within the industry. Over $65 billion has been withdrawn from mutual funds, while ETFs have attracted more than $250 billion in 2024 alone, continuing a trend from the previous year.

The ongoing transition is also influenced by regulatory changes, with firms such as Dimensional and Morgan Stanley seeking the SEC’s blessing to offer ETF shares of their existing mutual funds, aiming to enhance tax efficiencies and potentially help make assets within mutual funds stickier.