This book provides an analysis, under both discrete-time and continuous-time frameworks, on the price dynamics of leveraged exchange-traded funds (LETFs), with emphasis on the roles of leverage ratio, realized volatility, investment horizon, and tracking errors. This study provides new insights on the risks associated with LETFs. It also leads to the discussion of new risk management concepts, such as admissible leverage ratios and admissible risk horizon, as well as the mathematical and empirical analyses of several trading strategies, including static portfolios, pairs trading, and stop-loss strategies involving ETFs and LETFs. The final part of the book addresses the pricing of options written on LETFs. Since different LETFs are designed to track the same reference index, these funds and their associated options share very similar sources of randomness. The authors provide a no-arbitrage pricing approach that consistently value options on LETFs with different leverage ratios with stochastic volatility and jumps in the reference index. Their results are useful for market making of these options, and for identifying price discrepancies across the LETF options markets. As the market of leveraged exchange-traded products become a sizeable connected part of the financial market, it is crucial to better understand its feedback effect and broader market impact. This is important not only for individual and institutional investors, but also for regulators.

Leveraged Exchange-Traded Funds (LETFs) are publicly-traded funds that promise to provide daily returns that are in a multiple (positive or negative) of the returns on an index. To meet that promise, the funds use leverage, which is typically obtained through derivatives such as futures contracts, forward contracts, and total-return swaps. As of the end of 2012, there were over 250 LETFs in North America with total assets of approximately $32.24 billion. While the amount of assets held by these funds is still small, their popularity continues to grow as their trading volume is significantly larger and much more dynamic than traditional, non-leveraged ETFs. This comprehensive guide to LETFs provides high-level practitioners and researchers with a detailed reference tool for navigating the market and making informed investment decisions. Written from a measured analytical perspective, Miu and Charupat use clear and concise explanations of all important aspects of LETFs, focusing on such key elements as structure, pricing, performance, regulations, taxation, and trading strategies. The first two chapters set the stage for the book by identifying exactly what LETFs are and how they are regulated. The following chapters then look to bridge theory with practice to dive deep into the mechanics, portfolio rebalancing techniques, and daily compounding effects that make investing in these funds so lucrative.

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) revolutionized asset markets by using an innovative structure to make investing in a wide variety of asset classes simpler and cheaper. With their growing importance has come increasing concern that these products pose new risks to market stability and performance. This paper examines whether ETFs affect systemic risks in financial markets and, if they do, what the mechanism is by which this impact occurs and what can be done to keep the risks under control. We review current research and empirical evidence on these issues and discuss some emerging risks in ETFs. We ask whether we have the right “rules of the road” to deal with the new drivers of market behavior.

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have become in their 25-year history one of the fastest growing segments of the investment management business. These funds provide liquid access to virtually every financial market and allow large and small investors to build institutional-caliber portfolios. Yet, their management fees are significantly lower than those typical of mutual funds. High levels of transparency in ETFs for holdings and investment strategy help investors evaluate an ETF’s potential returns and risks. This book covers the evolution of ETFs as products and in their uses in investment strategies. It details how ETFs work, their unique investment and trading features, their regulatory structure, how they are used in tactical and strategic portfolio management in a broad range of asset classes, and how to evaluate them individually.

Written by veteran financial professional and experienced author Richard Ferri, The ETF Book gives you a broad and deep understanding of this important investment vehicle and provides you with the tools needed to successfully integrate exchange-traded funds into any portfolio. Each chapter of The ETF Book offers concise coverage of various issues and is filled with in-depth insights on different types of ETFs as well as practical advice on how to select and manage them.

Smart financial strategies that can secure your financial future There are more than 600 exchange traded funds on the market today, and new ones are opening every day. Total worldwide invested assets in ETFs now tops $500 billion. Written in a straightforward and accessible style, Super Sectors outlines a specialized trading system that utilizes standard and leveraged exchange traded funds in an easy-to-follow plan, so that you can identify and invest in the hottest sectors in the world. In this book, author John Nyaradi skillfully shows you how to use ETFs to take advantage of businesses and sectors that are profiting, while also minimizing risk by getting out of the same areas before they start to decline. Along the way, Nyaradi reveals how to best analyze different sectors, such as technology, utilities, industrial, energy, services, and finance, and then discusses which ETFs can help you profit from the opportunities these sectors present. The book: • Outlines an active investment management strategy that will allow you to generate steady success in any market • Details how different types of businesses profit and suffer during different business cycles • Explores how sectors rotation strategies and exchange traded funds can put you in a better position to excel financially • Includes interviews with key experts The “buy-and-hold” strategy of yesterday won’t work in today’s investment environment. Nyaradi identifies the strongest potential sectors in the future. Find out what will work with Super Sectors as your guide.

A sophisticated guide to today?s hottest investment vehicle? exchange traded funds The ETF Strategist is aimed primarily at investment advisers and sophisticated retail investors who are interested in using exchange traded funds, or using them more effectively than they already do. Compared with mutual funds, ETFs can offer a better way to diversify risk, target specific sectors or countries, avoid style drift, and maintain a specific asset allocation that might include real estate or commodities. Previous ETF books have focused on their mechanics, regulation, and other basic information. But The ETF Strategist goes much further, showing how ETFs can improve many aspects of an overall investment strategy. It explores advanced concepts such as alphabeta separation, which basically means ?don?t confuse skill with risk.? And it shows how different ETFs can be combined to find the ideal balance of risk and potential reward.