ETF Junction, a fintech platform dedicated to Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), aims to create a complete ecosystem involving mutual funds, investors, advisors and influencers/ experts and help retail investors expand their investment horizon to include ETFs. According to the platform, investors can now access 9500+ Indian and International ETFs, more than 660 Global ETF issuers. Here is a review.

What it is

ETF Junction (https://etfjunction.com/) is a financial technology platform operated by Financial Basket Capital Pvt. Ltd. It also provides technology solutions and related infrastructure to SEBI registered investment advisors. One can buy and sell ETFs from the Indian market (listed on either BSE or NSE) during trading hours. Trading for International ETFs will be enabled shortly.

The platform intends to create an ETF-exclusive investment community where investors can share their investment thoughts and concerns, engage with peers and learn all about ETFs from experts and verified influencers.

Also read: SEBI defers deadline for direct ETF transactions yet again

According to the platform, AI powers its intelligent algorithm to bring new investors to the ETF ecosystem with relevant news, articles, and research exclusive to requirements & preferences. The platform has signed up with AMCs to create awareness campaigns to educate investors on the benefits of ETFs.

Do note that ETF Junction is not an investment advisor. All trading and transactions is done via partner service providers. For instance, for Indian ETFs, ETF Junction has back-end integration with smallcase API. When you do a buy/ sell on the platform, you are redirected to your demat account through smallcase technology.

Similarly, the platform is tying up with interactive brokers to enable Global ETF transactions. An investor needs to open an account with interactive brokers if their existing demat service provider does not have the access.

Also read: Simply Put: Market Making in ETFs

What’s hot

The platform offers various tools such as ETF Screener where you select your ETFs based on asset class, issuer, expense ratio and more. With the ETF Compare tool, one can compare ETFs based on facts, performance, portfolio, costs and risk measure metrics. The ETF Stock Exposure tool will direct you to ETFs with significant holdings in a stock that you mention. With ETF Country Exposure tool, you can check the country-specific exposure of an ETF in your portfolio.

Under the learning section, ETF Junction Academy allows you to explore the resource library and Youtube channel to learn everything about ETFs, including analysis on trends, market events and news from around the world.

Costs, charges

Currently, there are no charges applicable for using the ETF Junction platform for trading in ETFs. Account opening charges will depend on the demat account providers. The platform does not charge anything here as well.

In the absence of charging for ETF trading, the ETF Junction business model is likely to revolve around advertisements from enablers for their NFO, subscription fees for tools, fees from ETF advisors and influencers. Everything is under development at the moment.

ETF Junction may receive payments for order flow through third parties.

Our take

ETFs can offer lower operating costs than traditional open-end funds and flexible trading through the stock exchange route, but at the same time this product offering can also suffer from low trading volumes and liquidity. While mutual fund platforms are a dime a dozen, at this moment there are very few ETF dedicated platforms.

ETF Junction aims to become a one-stop solution for everything ETF. This comes at a time when the regulator SEBI has introduced new guidelines to make the ecosystem more vibrant for passive mutual funds.

The platform is currently under development and so all tools/ features may not be accessible immediately. The Android and iOS apps are to be released next month.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW