| In the history of 20th century personal
finance, three developments will emerge as paramount: the recognition
of the growth potential of common stocks, the explosion of mutual
funds, and the advent of indexing.
In the 21st century, we at Barclays
Global Investors ("BGI") thought it was time
for something new: an investment opportunity that combined
the best elements of stocks, mutual funds, and index
investing. Something that was easy to use and cost-effective.
Something that was flexible enough to meet the needs of active
traders as well as the most patient buy-and-hold investors.
Something we call iShares.
iShares are the world's most extensive family of Exchange
Traded Funds ("ETFs"). iShares combine the advantages
of stocks with those of index
funds. Like stocks, they are liquid, easy to use, and
can be traded in whatever number of shares you wish. Like
index funds, they provide diversification, market tracking,
and low expenses. In short, iShares are "industrial strength"
investment tools you can use to get the exposure you need,
at the level you want, at the moment you need it.
iShares is the latest contribution to the world of personal
investment management from Barclays Global Investors. As the
world's largest manager of indexed investment products1,
BGI teams manage:
- Nearly US$2 trillion in assets*
- Relationships with over 2,900 clients in 52 countries*
As the world's largest ETF manager2, BGI's commitment
to developing unique investment management opportunities
began more than 30 years ago with the creation of the
world's first index strategy. Over the last three decades,
we've applied equal measures of science, creativity, and
technology to the investment process.
*As of March 2008
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