HSBC Global Asset Management has launched Europe’s first ETF that tracks the Hang Seng tech index, ETF Stream can reveal.
The HSBC Hang Seng TECH UCITS ETF (HSTC) is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) with a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.50%.
Tracking the Hang Seng TECH index, HSTC offers investors exposure to the 30 largest technology companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
These 30 companies are from five sectors including information technology, industrials, healthcare, consumer discretionary and financials.
To be included in the index, companies must have high exposure to one of five themes; cloud, digital, e-commerce, fintech or internet/mobile.
The companies must also pass an innovation potential screening with the criteria that they operate a tech-enabled business model delivered via the internet, have strong R&D investment or a year-on-year revenue growth of at least 10%.
Olga de Tapia (pictured), global head of ETF sales at HSBC GAM, commented: “China’s technology sector has seen explosive growth over the past few years and the region is the second biggest global hub for unicorns, which benefit from access to government incentives and the rapidly growing domestic market of middle class, tech-savvy consumers.”
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Daniel Wong, director and head of research and analytics at Hang Seng Indexes, added: “We are delighted that a new ETF tracking the Hang Seng tech index is debuting in the UK and European markets.
“We launched the index to enable investors to access the innovative and increasingly important China technology sector, and we are pleased to see the launch of an ETF as the first to offer this opportunity to UCITS investors.”
