The team at a Southern California fund firm have boosted their ETF lineup to five funds in total with a $243.5-million-AUM conversion.

Jennifer Lisa Grancio The TCW Group Group Managing Director, Global Head of Distribution

Yesterday, Katie Koch, president and CEO of the TCW Group [profile], and Jennifer Grancio, global head of distribution, confirmed that the TCW Artificial Intelligence Equity Fund and the TCW New America Premier Equities Fund have transformed into the TCW Artifical Intelligence ETF (AIFD) and the TCW Compounders ETF (GRW), respectively. Both conversions took effect yesterday, after the two open-end mutual funds closed to investors on Friday.

GRW and AIFD are both series of the TCW ETF Trust and trade on the NYSE Arca, Inc. (in contrast with TCW's 3 existing ETFs). Los Angeles-based TCW Investment Management LLC serves as the new, actively managed ETFs' investment advisor.

Both new thematic ETFs come with an expense ratio of 75 basis points. That compares with 90bps (including a 67bps fee waiver) for class I (TGFTX, aka institutional) shares and 100bps (including a 138bps feewaver) for class N (TGJNX, aka investor) shares of AIFD's predecessor fund, and with 79bps for class I (TGREX) shares and 118bps for class N (TGYX) shares of GRW's predecessor fund. AIFD's predecessor had $61.202 million in AUM on Friday, while GRW's predecessor had $182.33 million.

Evan Feagans and Bo Fifer, both managing directors at TCW, serve as co-portfolio managers of AIFD. They had PMed the predecessor fund since January 2023, and that fund first debuted in August 2017.

Eli Horton and Joseph Shaposhnik, two more TCW managing directors, serve as co-PMs of GRW. Shaposhnik had PMed the predecessor fund since inception in January 2016, and Horton had PMed the predecessor fund since November 2023.

Koch describes the dual conversion as signifying "TCW's continued growth trajectory in ETFs." TCW entered the ETF space last October by buying a three-ETF business, and the TCW team is also preparing to roll out its first six fixed income ETFs (including two new launches and four mutual fund conversions).

"As we continue to innovate, we remain focused on cross-sector, long tem megatrends, such as AI, and their transformative impact," Koch states. "We will continue to pursue accessible, efficient products poised to capture ongoing and emerging opportunities in the market."

Grancio puts the dual conversion in the context of the TCW team's efforts to "offer concentrated active portfolios focused on the highest-conviction ideas."

"These strategies are designed to give broad exposure to the companies best positioned for alpha generation for many years as massive trends unfold," Grancio states.

AIFD and GRW's other service providers include: Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (BBH) as administrator, custodian, fund accountant, and transfer agent; Cohen & Company, Ltd. as independent accounting firm; ACA's Foreside Financial Services, LLC as distributor; Foreside Fund Officers Services, LLC as provider of a chief compliance officer, a principal finanical officer, and a treasurer; Glass Lewis & Co. LLC as independent proxy voting advisory firm; and Paul Hastings LLP as counsel. (Paul Hastings also served as counsel for the predecessor funds, while Deloitte & TTouche LLP served as independent accounting firm; State Street Bank and Trust Company served as administrator and custodian; TCW Funds Distributors LLC served as distributor; and U.S. Bank Global Fund Services served as transfer agent.) 

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