There is no denying that exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have taken the investing world by storm. Investors have continued to flock to the fund type thanks, in part, to its low costs, intraday tradability, and potential tax efficiencies. There are now thousands of different funds covering all matters of asset classes and sectors. Billions of dollars have flowed into ETFs from investors both large and small.
And much of ETFs’ wins have come on the back of old-fashioned mutual funds.
However, selecting ETFs over mutual funds isn’t always such an easy or quick decision to dump the latter for the new high-tech player. There are plenty of reasons why mutual funds may still have a place in your portfolio and, in some instances, may even be the better choice.
A Major Battle
Perhaps ETFs versus mutual funds could be the battle of the century when it comes to investing. And it seems that ETFs are winning the war. Investors have been plowing significant dollars into the fund type since their creation back in the 1990s with the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). According to consultancy and accounting group Ernst & Young, ETF assets currently sit at an estimated $4.4 trillion as of the end of September.
