It's offIcial: Vanguard[see profile] has unveiled plans to offer six ETFS focused on the Canadian market. The Valley Forge, Pennsylvania-based fund shop in June reportedly began talks with fundsters north of the border in anticipation of a launch.

The new ETFs include: the Vanguard MSCI Canada Index ETF; the Vanguard Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF; the Vanguard Canadian Short-Term Bond Index ETF; the Vanguard MSCI U.S. Broad Market Index ETF (CAD-hedged); the Vanguard MSCI EAFE Index ETF (CAD-hedged); and the Vanguard MSCI Emerging Markets Index ETF.

�Vanguard sees a tremendous amount of interest in ETFs from financial advisors and portfolio managers who are employing broad-based ETFs to build sound, balanced portfolios for their clients,� stated Atul Tiwari, managing director of Vanguard Investments Canada Inc.

The Toronto Star and Globe and Mail also covered the launch.

Vanguard Files Preliminary Prospectus for Six Exchange-Traded Funds

Vanguard Investments Canada Inc. has filed a preliminary prospectus with the Canadian securities regulators for its first suite of Canadian-domiciled exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The line-up of six funds includes equity and bond ETFs:

Vanguard MSCI Canada Index ETF, which will seek to track the performance of the MSCI Canada Index; Vanguard Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF, which will seek to track the performance of the Barclays Capital Global Aggregate Canadian Float Adjusted Bond Index; Vanguard Canadian Short-Term Bond Index ETF, which will seek to track the performance of the Barclays Capital Global Aggregate Canadian Government/Credit 1-5 year Float Adjusted Bond Index; Vanguard MSCI U.S. Broad Market Index ETF(CAD-hedged), which will seek to track the performance of the MSCI U.S. Broad Market 100% Hedged to CAD Index; Vanguard MSCI EAFE Index ETF(CAD-hedged), which will seek to track the performance of the MSCI EAFE 100% Hedged to Canadian Dollars Index; and Vanguard MSCI Emerging Markets Index ETF, which will seek to track the performance of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. Vanguard Investments Canada Inc. will be the manager of the ETFs, and The Vanguard Group, Inc. will provide portfolio management services to the ETFs.

�Vanguard sees a tremendous amount of interest in ETFs from financial advisors and portfolio managers who are employing broad-based ETFs to build sound, balanced portfolios for their clients,� said Atul Tiwari, Managing Director of Vanguard Investments Canada Inc. �The underlying story, however, is the increasing popularity of the low-cost index approach, which is winning converts among investors who traditionally favoured individual stocks and actively managed mutual funds. Investors are increasingly recognizing the negative impact of high fees on long-term returns. ETFs offer an accessible and flexible way for all constituencies to index.�

Vanguard is a global leader in ETFs with more than CAD $168 billion in ETF assets, and has ETFs listed on exchanges in the U.S., Mexico and Australia. In the U.S., Vanguard led the industry with CAD $34 billion in ETF cash flow in 2010, and its momentum continues in 2011 with CAD $21 billion in cash flow through July (source: Bloomberg and Vanguard).

Edited by: Hung Tran

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