ABI vs CLOA

ABIDVictoryShares Pioneer Asset-Based Inc ETF

CLOAAiShares AAA CLO Active ETF

In short

ABI Most funds in this corner buy one thing: AAA CLO tranches. ABI roams the whole securitized aisle instead (CLOs, CMOs, CMBS, ABS), stock-picked by an active manager into a compact bond book that pays monthly.

CLOA BlackRock's play in AAA CLOs: active credit picking measured against J.P. Morgan's CLOIE AAA index, 0.20% a year, spread over roughly 400 positions. A billion-dollar-plus book built since its 2023 launch.

Stated mandate

ABI The Fund seeks attractive total return by primarily investing in asset-based income investments, including debt instruments collateralized by specific assets such as CMOs, CLOs, CMBS, and ABS.

CLOA The fund seeks exposure to U.S. dollar-denominated AAA-rated collateralized loan obligations, using active credit selection to pursue income and capital preservation with potentially low volatility.

Why people hold it

• ABI Broader mandate than the AAA-CLO crowd: the fund invests across asset-backed income, including CMOs, CLOs, CMBS and ABS, rather than a single slice of the securitized market.
• Actively managed and concentrated, roughly 40 positions. A human is picking which collateral pools to own instead of buying the index wholesale.
• Pays monthly, which suits investors who like their bond income arriving on a regular cadence.

• CLOA Charges 0.20% a year, below the 0.25% typical for CLO funds and level with what most of the category's biggest names (JAAA, FAAA, ACLO) charge.
• Roughly 400 separate CLO positions, one of the deepest books in its peer group, so no single deal carries the fund.
• Actively run: the team selects deals and CLO managers instead of buying whatever a benchmark holds. The CLOIE AAA index is the yardstick, not the rulebook.
• Income arrives monthly, and it sits among the easier funds in its cohort to get in and out of.

Worth knowing

• ABI Active management carries an active price: 0.87% a year, against the 0.19% to 0.20% charged by the large AAA CLO funds like JAAA, CLOA and PAAA.
• Launched in June 2025, so the track record is short and the fund trades lightly. Thin volume can mean wider gaps between the price you pay and the value of the bonds inside.
• Reaching beyond AAA CLOs into CMBS, ABS and CMOs adds credit and complexity that a pure top-tranche fund avoids. More levers to pull, more that can move.

• CLOA Active means manager-dependent. There is no index to fall back on, so outcomes hinge on which deals the desk picks.
• The mandate pursues income and capital preservation with potentially low volatility. That is the aim, not a floor; CLO prices still move.
• Trading since January 2023, so its record is short next to long-running bond funds and covers a narrow slice of credit history.

Full ABI profile⁠

Full CLOA profile⁠