Reported by IndexUniverse’s Devon Layne and Olly Ludwig

Kudos to IU for scooping the news media–

Renaissance Capital, a research and investment management firm known for its IPO Plus Aftermarket Fund, filed regulatory paperwork requesting permission to offer a broad swath of ETFs targeting U.S. and non-U.S. stocks and bonds, with the first to be a fund that tracks its own Renaissance IPO Index.

The initial exchange-traded fund it is planning, called the Renaissance IPO ETF, will follow the performance of the U.S. IPO market through the use of an index that will be composed of a revolving list of qualified IPOs that change on a two-year rotation. The firm plans to market ETFs that are based on its own indexes.

[MarketMuse Editor’s note: we can only hope that FB incident and subsequent clog in IPO pipeline doesn’t put too much of a crimp in this initiative.]

Indeed, Greenwich, Conn.-based Renaissance’s “exemptive relief” filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission also requests permission to roll out funds with “affiliated indexes”—ETF lawyer-speak for in-house indexes. The petition with the SEC cited as precedents a number of firms that market self-indexed funds, including Russell and Van Eck Global.

The paperwork thus seeks to establish Renaissance’s presence in the dynamic ETF market, where total assets are now more than $1.150 trillion in over 1,450 securities. Moreover, the firm, by requesting to use its own indexes, is tapping into one of the newer trends in the ETF market that industry sources say reflects a desire among ETF sponsors to stop paying costly index-licensing fees. Continue reading →