Absa Capital Receives Regulatory Approval for Palladium ETF

Reuters reported that Absa Capital has received regulatory approval for a Johannesburg-listed palladium exchange-traded fund (ETF) that it plans to launch by the end of 2013. The ETF will be backed only by palladium sourced in South Africa.

As quoted in the market news:

‘We have regulatory approval, and we’re now basically just finalising a couple of small things,’ [Absa’s head of investments, Vladimir] Nedeljkovic[,] said. ‘We definitely want to list before the end of the year.’

A similar fund backed by platinum that Absa launched in April saw huge inflows from investors, growing in just four months into the world’s biggest platinum-backed ETF by metal under management.

Palladium has been the best performer of the main precious metals this year, with prices up 3.5 percent since the end of 2012, compared with an 8 percent drop in platinum prices and a 20 percent fall in gold.

Click here to read the full Reuters report.