The exchange traded fund industry has been feted as offering low cost access to a wide range of investment opportunities. It has occasionally had its knuckles rapped for getting over-enthusiastic about short and leveraged products that may not track in the way investors expect. But generally, the plain vanilla FTSE 100 or S&P 500 ETFs have been seen as A GOOD THING.
Now along comes Watson Wyatt to throw a bucket of cold water on the ETF party. The consultant says institutional investors can get a better deal elsewhere. There are institutional index products with lower fees, a better tax structure, and less or no counterparty risk.
