Barclays Global Investors said on Wednesday that it will move primary listings for the bulk of its exchange-traded funds from the American Stock Exchange to the New York Stock Exchange and its electronic trading arm over the next two years.
Barclays said the primary listings for 61 of its iShares ETFs will move to the big board. Primary listings for another 19 funds and iShares COMEX Gold Trust (IAU), an ETF backed by gold bullion, will move to the Archipelago Exchange, an electronic stock exchange that is merging with the New York exchange.
Barclays has 99 iShares funds, 16 of which are currently listed on the New York exchange. The funds have a combined $140 billion in assets. The offerings are index funds that trade throughout the day, like stocks.
The move to the New York and Archipelago exchanges “is designed to take best advantage of each exchange’s unique attributes, be it pure electronic execution with a dedicated liquidity provider or a floor-based specialist system,” Barclays said.