AllianceBernstein recently announced the launch of its first set of active exchange-traded funds. The funds, which trade on the NYSE, include the AB Ultra-Short Income ETF (YEAR) and the AB Tax-Aware Short Duration Municipal ETF (TAFI). YEAR is an actively managed ETF that aims to deliver higher levels of yield relative to cash or cash-like investments while aiming for capital preservation in all market cycles. TAFI is an actively managed municipal bond strategy that offers municipal bond investors a distinct complement to their core allocations providing the opportunity to help maximize after-tax income and returns using shorter maturity bonds and opportunistic exposure to treasuries and taxable bonds. The launch comes only seven months after the firm announced plans to build a global ETF business under Noel Archard, who joined the company in February as global head of ETFs and portfolio solutions. Archard commented on the launch, "Today's ETF launch is an exciting achievement for our firm. ETFs have evolved into an important execution tool across asset classes, and amidst the recent market volatility, we feel it is critical to offer our clients diversity and efficiency.”

Finsum:AllianceBernstein launched two active fixed ETFs as part of its plans to build a global ETF business.

BondBloxx Investment Management recently announced the launch of eight duration-specific U.S. Treasury ETFs. The funds, which trade on the NYSE Arca, offer investors a more precise, lower-cost way to get exposure to U.S. Treasury Securities. The ETFs track a series of indices developed by Bloomberg Index Services that include duration-constrained subsets of U.S. Treasury bonds with over $300 billion outstanding. The funds add to BondBloxx’s existing eleven products launched this year, including seven industry sector-specific high yield bond ETFs, three ratings-specific high yield bond ETFs, and one short-duration emerging market bond ETF. The new ETFs include the BondBloxx Bloomberg Six Month Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XHLF), the BondBloxx Bloomberg One Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XONE), the BondBloxx Bloomberg Two Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XTWO), the BondBloxx Bloomberg Three Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XTRE), the BondBloxx Bloomberg Five Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XFIV), the BondBloxx Bloomberg Seven Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XSVN), the BondBloxx Bloomberg Ten Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XTEN), and the BondBloxx Bloomberg Twenty Year Target Duration US Treasury ETF (XTWY).

Finsum:BondBloxx adds to its existing suite of ETFs with eight duration-specific U.S. Treasury ETFs giving investors lower cost exposure to U.S. Treasury Securities.

Two strategists from Royce Investment Partners believe that now is the right time to consider small-cap stocks. In an article on Wealthmanagement.com, Francis Gannon and Steve Lipper gave six reasons why they believe the current environment is a great time to invest in small-cap stocks. The first reason is that small caps currently have superior valuations compared to large-cap stocks. Another reason to invest in small caps is the fact that small caps have a history of outperformance following periods of high investor anxiety and low-risk tolerance. Small caps have also historically beaten large caps following periods of deep declines. In addition, small caps operate in their own way; meaning there are significant differences between small and large caps in their long-term performance during different market cycles. Gannon and Lipper also mention that small caps are a highly heterogeneous asset class, indicating that there are so many small-cap companies that investors can find stocks in every sector and industry. The sixth and final reason is that investors lose out by waiting to put capital to work. They noted that small-cap recoveries have historically happened very quickly.

Finsum:Two strategists from Royce Investment Partners provide six compelling reasons why investors should consider small-cap stocks now.

Ethic, which is an ESG investing fintech that offers direct indexing to investment advisors, has raised $50m in a Series C funding round. Ethic is available to advisors that use the custody services of Fidelity, Charles Schwab, U.S. Bank, Northern Trust, Morgan Stanley, or Pershing. The company offers custom direct indexing portfolios that reflect a client’s values, financial goals, and tax preferences. The firm also offers impact reporting and educational materials. The asset manager, which focuses on socially responsible portfolios, currently has over $2 billion in assets. The latest funding round was led by Jordan Park Group. Other firms involved in the funding round include UBS’s venture arm, UBS Next, and existing investors such as Oak HC/FT, Nyca Partners, Sound Ventures, Urban Innovation Fund, and Kapor Capital. In an announcement, the firm stated that the new capital will “support Ethic’s ambitious growth plans, including expansion into new markets and products, and continued investments in its platform experience.”

Finsum:Direct indexing firm Ethic raised $50 million in a new funding round to expand into new markets and products.

A new insurance company plans on selling non-variable annuities directly to consumers. Former Global Bankers Insurance Group executives teamed up to start Pillar Life by forming Pillar Insurance LLC and using the entity to acquire Continental Life Insurance Company. Pillar Insurance renamed Continental Life to Pillar Life last year. The company plans on building a web-based self-service process by April 2023. The insurer has already posted guides to multi-year guaranteed annuity contracts and single-premium immediate annuities on its website. The Interstate Insurance Compact, which is an organization that helps states review product and rate filings, has approved Pillar Life forms for an SPIA contract and a single-premium deferred annuity contract. Pillar Life will also offer life insurance and supplemental health insurance products. For clients, this means they will have more ways to buy annuities on their own. For advisors, however, it will likely make it more difficult to go through the paperwork to find out what clients own.

Finsum:Pillar Life plans on offering non-variable annuities direct to consumers through a web-based self-service model.