BBAX vs IPAC

BBAXBJPMorgan BetaBuilders Developed Asia Pacific ex-Japan ETF

IPACAiShares Core MSCI Pacific ETF

In short

BBAX Developed Asia Pacific with Japan deliberately cut out: Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and New Zealand in one ticket. The region's other half, indexed, at a price below the typical international blend fund.

IPAC The developed Pacific in one line item: roughly 1,400 large, mid and small caps for 0.09% a year, well under the 0.35% median for its international peer group. iShares has run it as a core building block since 2014.

Stated mandate

BBAX The fund is designed to provide indexed exposure to developed Asian Pacific equity markets while excluding Japan.

IPAC The fund seeks to track an index of large-, mid-, and small-cap equities from the Pacific region.

Why people hold it

• BBAX Costs 0.19% a year, under the roughly 0.28% median for its international blend peer group.
• Japan is excluded by design, so it stacks next to a separate Japan holding without overlap. It tracks a Morningstar developed Asia Pacific ex-Japan index.jpmorgan.com
• Plain index plumbing since 2018: about 90 stocks across four markets, quarterly distributions, and a multi-billion-dollar asset base behind it.

• IPAC Charges 0.09% a year against a 0.35% median for its international cohort. Among its closest-graded peers, only VXUS (0.05%) costs less.
• Follows the MSCI Pacific Investable Market Index closely, among the tightest index-tracking in its peer group.ishares.com
• "Investable Market" means small caps ride along with the blue chips: roughly 1,400 holdings rather than a short list of household names.
• Sits in the top quartile of the broad international funds we grade, with no structural flags on the wrapper and a multi-billion-dollar asset base.

Worth knowing

• BBAX Four markets and roughly 90 names. This is a regional slice, not a diversified international core.
• Broad ex-US funds cost less for far wider coverage: VEU at 0.04% and IXUS at 0.07%, both including Japan.
• Trading is moderate rather than heavy, so spreads deserve a look at the open and close. It sits in the lower half of its peer group overall.

• IPAC One region, not the world. Broader options like VXUS hold developed and emerging markets across the globe in a single ticker.
• A Pacific-only mandate rides on a handful of economies and their currencies, a narrower base than a globally spread stock fund.
• Volume is moderate rather than heavy, so spreads can run wider than the largest international funds, and income arrives once or twice a year.

Full BBAX profile⁠

Full IPAC profile⁠