Franklin Templeton's Xavier: More education needed on ETF liquidity

MiFID II 'a positive'

Jason Xavier, head of EMEA ETF Capital Markets at Franklin Templeton Investments, has said independent financial advisers (IFAs) and retail clients are the final parts of the value chain who still need educating on the nuances of ETFs.

Speaking to Investment Week, Xavier (pictured) said the biggest education issues were around the role of authorised participants (APs) and fears of a lack of liquidity. As such, he said MiFID II was positive for the European ETF market as it shone a light on the previously unknown volume of ETFs traded over-the-counter (OTC), thereby reassuring investors on liquidity risks. Issues regarding the secondary market liquidity of ETF shares were raised by Andrew Bailey, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), last month. He said little was known about the willingness of...