KUALA LUMPUR (March 10): Aham Asset Management Bhd is shutting two of its four exchange-traded funds (ETF) managed by its ETF manager TradePlus, citing small fund size and high expenses.

TradePlus DWA Malaysia Momentum Tracker and TradePlus MSCI Ex Japan REITs Tracker both issued termination notices via separate filings with Bursa Malaysia earlier on Monday.

Aham Asset Management stated that high ongoing fees and the small size of the ETFs resulted in a high expense ratio. After a viability review with the ETF trustee, it was concluded that continuing the fund’s management is no longer cost-effective.

The TradePlus DWA Malaysia Momentum Tracker and TradePlus MSCI Asia Ex Japan REITs Tracker were both launched almost five years ago, on July 9, 2020.

The DWA Malaysia Momentum Tracker was designed to provide investors with access to Malaysian stocks, with high momentum movement in terms of pricing, while the MSCI Asia Ex Japan REITs Tracker was designed to provide investors access to the Asia ex Japan REITs market.

The DWA Malaysia Momentum Tracker’s fund size stood at RM1.58 million as of Feb 28, 2025, while TradePlus MSCI Asia Ex Japan REITs Tracker stood at RM 3.78 million as of Feb 28, 2025.

The ETFs can be terminated without a special resolution at a unitholders’ meeting, as per the deed.

Both funds’ trading units will be suspended on March 26, 2025.

There will be no final income distribution for MSCI Asia Ex Japan REITs Tracker, in keeping with the termination process. Final proceeds of both ETFs will be credited to unitholders’ accounts on March 27, 2025.

Overall, Malaysians’ ETF total volume eased by 43.7% to 2.4 million units month-on-month in January, while value traded was down by 36.3% month-on-month in January to RM6.6 million.