The folks at a five-year-old, $6.322-billion-AUM (as of yesterday, i.e. January 15, 2025) asset manager in Gotham rolled out their first China-focused fund earlier this week. The move expands the the fund firm's product lineup to 35 ETFs in total.

David Marc Berns Simplify Asset Management Inc. CIO, Co-Founder

On Tuesday (January 14), David Berns, chief investment officer and co-founder of Simplify Asset Management, Inc. [profile], unveiled the launch of the Simplify China A Shares PLUS Income ETF (CAS on the NYSE Arca, Inc.). New York City-based Simplify serves as investment advisor to the new, actively managed ETF.

CAS' inception date was Monday (January 13), and the fund comes with an expense ratio of 88 basis points. As of yesterday, the new fund had about $2.477 million in AUM.

Berns and Chris Getter, emerging markets strategist at Simplify, serve as co-PMs of CAS. The ETF is designed to generate income while also investing in China A shares. Yet CAS currently invests in China A shares indirectly, through total return swaps.

Berns notes that CAS is part of Simplify's "growing roster of 'PLUS Income' ETFs." (CAS is the fourth fund in that suite. Others focus on Bitcoin, gold, and U.S. small cap stocks.) He describes China as "a key component of any well-diversified international portfolio" and calls CAS "a more robust and resilient China ETF."

"The coming year is likely to bring with it heightened geopolitical tensions, including between the U.S. and China," Berns states. "By accessing A share performance via total return swaps, investors do not face the possibility of their capital being locked up in the event of sanctions or other actions that may make A share equities themselves untradeable or otherwise inaccessible."

CAS is a series of Simplify Exchanage Traded Funds. The fund's other service providers include: Bank of New York Mellon as administrator, custodian, dividend disbursing agent, fund accountant, shareholder servicing agent, and transfer agent; Cohen & Company, Ltd. as counsel; ACA's Foreside Financial Services, LLC as distributor; and Thompson Hine LLP as counsel. 

Stay ahead of the news ... Sign up for our email alerts now
CLICK HERE