Exchange Traded Fund

An Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF) is a security that trades on a stock exchange and that, in sufficient quantity, is exchangeable with a defined basket of securities. An ETF often can be found that has a lower expense ratio than similar mutual funds. However, the number of ETFs available in the Canadian market is significantly lower than the total available in the much larger US market, so Canadian investors seeking certain categories or styles may find that no Canadian ETF is available.

Investors seeking to buy or sell positions in the less-traded ETFs may also find that there may be poor liquidity and/or large bid-ask spreads. Additionally, many of the sector ETFs contain only a small number of stocks. Purchasers are encouraged to check the data provided on the vendor's website carefully before making a decision.

ETF providers

There are a number of ETF providers in Canada. The ETF providers can be distinguished by the differences in the philosophy, style and underlying indices used for their offerings.

• Barclays US-based iShares
• BlackRock Canadian-based iShares
• BMO Exchange Traded Funds
• Claymore Investments - note that BlackRock Completes Acquisition of Claymore Investments on March 7, 2012
• Horizons Exchange Traded Funds
• Invesco PowerShares
• RBC Global Asset Management (GAM)
• Vanguard Investments Canada Inc.
• XTF Capital’s eXchange Traded Funds

Here is a complete list of all Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs) trading on Toronto Stock Exchange, sorted alphabetically by symbol and a glossary of ETF terms.