BMO ETFs Have Started Trading

Four ETFs from BMO started trading on June 4, 2009. Descriptions directly from the press release:

• BMO Canadian Government Bond Index ETF (BGB) has been designed to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the Citigroup Canadian Government Bond Index.
• BMO Dow Jones Canada Titans 60 Index ETF (BCA) has been designed to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the Dow Jones Canada Titans 60 Index.
• BMO US Equity Index ETF (BUE) has been designed to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Index (CAD hedged).
• BMO Dow Jones Diamonds^SM Index ETF (BDJ) has been designed to replicate, to the extent possible, the performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (CAD hedged).

BUE and BDJ both hedge exposure to the USD. The MERs for the funds are pretty low, undercutting iShares funds. Here's a comparison vs comparable iShares offerings:

Ticker	MER	# Holdings	Comments
BGB	0.341	28	Weighted Avg Duration 6.49; All Federal holdings; All AAA rated
XGB	0.35	86	Weighted Avg Duration 6.34; 63% federal, 34% provincial, 2% municipal; 68% AAA, 19% AA, 12% A
BCA	0.158	61
XIU	0.17	60
BUE	0.231	250
XSP	0.24	501	Invests in IVV, which has 501 holdings
BDJ	0.242	31	No iShares equivalent

BMO also plans to launch 3 other ETFs at a later date covering International Equities, Emerging Markets, and Global Infrastructure.

There isn't that much to say after only a couple of days of trading, but I will keep my eyes on these ETFs. There are only a few ETF sponsors in Canada, and before these BMO ETFs started trading, iShares was the only one tracking traditional market-cap indices. Here's hoping some competition gives rise to better (and lower cost) products.