Russell to Liquidate All But One of Its ETFs

Russell Investments, the index provider for some of the largest ETFs, said it will liquidate all 25 of its passively managed ETFs. The move will leave the firm with just one actively managed product, the Russell Equity ETF (NYSE:ONEF).

The affected Russell ETFs will close to new investment on October 9, 2012 and the funds will be delisted at the close of trading on October 16. Full liquidation of the funds is intended to be completed by October 24, Russell said in a statement.

The following Russell ETFs will be shuttered: The Russell 1000 High Beta ETF (NYSE:HBTA), the Russell 1000 Low Beta ETF (NYSE:LBTA), the Russell 1000 High Volatility ETF (NYSE: HVOL), the Russell 1000 Low Volatility ETF (NYSE:LVOL), the Russell 1000 High Momentum ETF (NYSE:HMTM), the Russell 2000 High Beta ETF (NYSE:SHBT), the Russell 2000 Low Beta ETF (NYSE:SLBT), the Russell 2000 High Volatility ETF (NYSE: SHVY), the Russell 2000 Low Volatility ETF (NYSE:SLVY), the Russell 2000 High Momentum ETF (NYSE:SHMO), the Russell Developed ex-U.S. Low Beta ETF (NYSE:XLBT), Russell Developed ex-U.S. Low Volatility ETF (NYSE:XLVO) and the Russell Developed ex-U.S. High Momentum ETF (NYSE:XHMO).

Other Russell funds slated for closure include the following: The Russell Aggressive Growth ETF (NYSE: AGRG), the Russell Consistent Growth ETF (NYSE:CONG), the Russell Contrarian ETF (NYSE: CNTR), the Russell Equity Income ETF (NYSE: EQIN), the Russell Growth at a Reasonable Price ETF (NYSE:GRPC), the Russell Low P/E ETF (NYSE: LWPE), the Russell Small Cap Aggressive Growth ETF (NASDAQ:SGGG), the Russell Small Cap Consistent Growth ETF (NASDAQ:SCOG), the Russell Small Cap Contrarian ETF (NASDAQ:SCTR), the Russell Small Cap Low P/E ETF (NASDAQ:SCLP), the Russell High Dividend Yield ETF (NYSE:HDIV) and the Russell Small Cap High Dividend Yield ETF (NYSE:DIVS).

"Given challenging equity market conditions since the launch of these products, Russell determined that proposing the liquidation of the passively managed ETFs at this time is in the best interests of the ETFs and their shareholders," Russell said in the statement.

Russell made the announcement after the close of U.S. markets on August 17.

Earlier this month, Russell said it was conducting a strategic review of its U.S. ETF operations. At the time of that announcement, Russell said it would scaling back its U.S. ETF staff, prompting speculation fund closures could be on the way.

Russell joins Direxion and Scottrade's FocusShares in announcing ETF closures in August. Direxion is slated to close nine leveraged products while Scottrade will liquidate all 15 FocusShares ETFs.

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