After BlackRock Inc.’s BLK move to reduce expense fees for more than a dozen of its ETFs, The Charles Schwab Corporation SCHW is also treading the same path. However, this is not the first time that the company has opted for fee cuts. It is one of the major investment firms that initiated this price competition. It is speculated that Schwab’s moves, which is currently the fifth biggest provider of U.S. ETFs, will intensify the price war further and prompt other major players in this space to take similar steps. Some believe that this may also lead to lower fees for some ETFs close to zero (read: Buy These ETFs as BlackRock Cuts Fees). Schwab Cuts Fees This leading investment management company opted to reduce expense ratios for five of its ETFs. It has reduced the fees by 1 basis point for each of the funds. These funds include four equity ETFs and one bond ETF. Here are the 5 ETFs that witnessed fees cuts: Schwab US Small-Cap ETF SCHA – from 0.07% to 0.06% Schwab US Mid-Cap ETF SCHM – from 0.07% to 0.06% Schwab International Equity ETF SCHF – from 0.08% to 0.07% Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF SCHE – from 0.14% to 0.13% Schwab US Aggregate Bond ETF SCHZ – from 0.05% to 0.04% Following the fees cut Marie Chandoha, CEO of Charles Schwab Investment Management, said: “The appeal of index investing continues to accelerate. When individuals invest their hard-earned money, they are increasingly searching for low-cost, transparent, enduring products. It’s our mission to deliver on that.” Though the desire to capture a larger market share is speculated to be the main reason behind these moves, the new set of “fiduciary rules” by the Labor Department is also a major factor behind the fees cut. The rule asks advisors to give precedence to their client’s interest over their own, which is leading them to offer low-cost products (read: Looking for Inexpensive Dividend ETFs? Here They Are). Is a New Era of Zero Fees Approaching? The way in which the fees cut war is intensifying, some believe that major players in the ETF domain may soon introduce products with zero expense ratios. Lee Kranefuss, one of the founders of iShares, indicated that zero expense funds are quite possible. He said: “A certain amount of this stuff is marketing, and a certain amount is related to the economies of scale… It would be a great headline for someone to offer a fund with no fees, but you can’t have whole families at zero because then no one could make money” (read: How Retirement Saving Rules are Making ETFs More Attractive) Meanwhile, it is quite evident that low expense choices have attracted significant attention from investors, which led these funds to attract a notable portion of investor assets. According to a Bloomberg report, Vanguard Group and Fidelity Investments, which slashed fees for a significant number of funds this year, took in around $162 billion of investor assets this year. Moreover, the world’s largest ETF provider, BlackRock’s move to reduce fees for 15 of its iShares ETFs is also speculated to boost the company’s assets under management. These may encourage the firms to reduce fees for their funds further, which in turn may lead to an era of no expense funds (read: Fidelity Slashes Fees for 11 Sector ETFs). Bottom Line Investors are likely to be the foremost gainers from this intensifying price war. Fee cuts will help investors to get exposed to high quality portfolios at expense costs of less than 10 basis points, which is a huge plus for them. Meanwhile, the growing popularity of passive investing is also poised to boost the already expanding ETF industry further, as most of the products in this space look to replicate their benchmark indexes. Thus, these factors are speculated to have a positive impact on the overall ETF industry. Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox? Zacks’ free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report SCHWAB(CHAS) (SCHW): Free Stock Analysis Report BLACKROCK INC (BLK): Free Stock Analysis Report SCHWAB-US SC (SCHA): ETF Research Reports SCHWAB-EMG MKT (SCHE): ETF Research Reports SCHWAB-US MC (SCHM): ETF Research Reports SCHWAB-US AG BD (SCHZ): ETF Research Reports SCHWAB-INTL EQ (SCHF): ETF Research Reports To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Investment service the Charles Schwab Corporation (Schwab) is following BlackRock’s lead by lowering expense fees for one of its ETFs. This is not the first time Schwab has implemented such a cut, but it is one of several major investment firms taking this approach to price competition. The Scwab SU Small-Cap ETF fee is dropping from 0.07% to 0.06%; the Schwab US Mid-Cap ETF from 0.07% to 0.06%; the Schwab International Equity ETF from 0.08% to 0.07%; the Schwab Emerging Markets Equity ETF from 0.14% to 0.13%; and the Schwab US Aggregate Bond ETF from 0.05% to 0.04%.