BBBL vs SPLB

BBBLCBondBloxx BBB Rated 10+ Year Corporate Bond ETF

SPLBAState Street SPDR Portfolio Long Term Corporate Bond ETF

In short

BBBL Most corporate bond funds hand you the entire ratings ladder. BBBL takes one rung and one maturity band: BBB-rated corporate paper maturing in 10 years or more. A single-cell tool for people who want to set credit and duration themselves.

SPLB SPLB owns the long end of the corporate bond market, investment-grade debt maturing in 10 years or more, for four basis points a year. Maximum duration exposure at a near-free price.

Stated mandate

BBBL The Fund seeks to track the Bloomberg US Corporate BBB 10+ Year Index before fees and expenses. The index covers BBB-rated, fixed-rate, taxable, U.S. dollar-denominated corporate bonds with remaining maturities of at least ten years.

SPLB The fund seeks to track the Bloomberg U.S. Long Term Corporate Bond Index, which represents U.S. corporate bonds with maturities of at least 10 years.

Why people hold it

• BBBL Pure slice, no blending: BBB-rated, fixed-rate, dollar-denominated corporate bonds with at least ten years left to run. The label and the portfolio say the same thing.
• 0.19% a year sits right at the median for investment-grade corporate ETFs, so the narrow mandate does not carry a specialist markup.
• Distributions land monthly, matching how most household bills arrive rather than a quarterly drip.

• SPLB Charges 0.04% a year, far under the typical investment-grade corporate bond ETF.
• Roughly 2,900 bonds tracking the Bloomberg U.S. Long Term Corporate Bond Index, so no single issuer steers the fund.ssga.com
• Coupons pass through monthly, and the fund has been running since 2009 with steady trading volume behind it.
• Tracks its index tightly and ranks among the stronger builds in the investment-grade corporate group.

Worth knowing

• BBBL Ten-year-plus maturities are the sharp end of rate sensitivity. Price moves per rate shift are far larger here than in short or intermediate corporate funds.
• BBB is the bottom rung of investment grade, one notch above high yield, so downgrade risk sits closer than in AA or A portfolios.
• Small and lightly traded next to broad corporate giants like VCIT and IGIB, which also charge a few basis points. Spreads can be wider on this one.

• SPLB Ten-year-plus maturities swing hard when rates move. Intermediate SPIB or short-dated IGSB cover the same credit with far less rate sensitivity.
• Pure corporate credit, no Treasury ballast, so prices fall when spreads widen.
• US issuers only. No overseas corporate exposure here.

Full BBBL profile⁠

Full SPLB profile⁠