By a stroke of coincidence, Tuesday saw the launch of not one, but two funds that owe their existence to the Build America Bonds program.

Invesco PowerShares executives ring the opening bell at the NYSE on Tuesday, marking the launch of the PowerShares Build America Bond Portfolio. Photo courtesy of Mel Nudelman and the NYSE

Eaton Vance unwrapped the Eaton Vance Build America Bond Fund, which company officials are pitching as the first actively managed mutual fund that invests in Build America Bonds. Class A shares come with an expense ratio of 95 basis points, C shares sport a 170 bps expense ratio and I shares cost 70 bps.

From the passively managed corner comes Invesco PowerShares' PowerShares Build America Bond Portfolio, which marks the Wheaton, Illinois-based firm's sole ETF listing for this year. The ETF tracks the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Bond Index and comes with a net expense ratio of 28 bps. Invesco PowerShares executives were in New York Tuesday morning to attend the bell ringing at the New York Stock Exchange.

The timing of the two products' launch was a "complete coincidence," an Eaton Vance spokesperson told The MFWire. 

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