CLIP vs GSST

CLIPAGlobal X 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF

GSSTAGoldman Sachs Ultra Short Bond ETF

In short

CLIP Treasury bills, one to three months out, at half the fee of the category's longtime giant. Global X launched CLIP in 2023 as the cheap challenger in the parking-lot corner of the bond market, and it has hugged its index tightly since.

GSST Goldman's first actively managed ETF, and it acts like it. Instead of a plain T-bill ladder, GSST roams across government, bank, corporate, mortgage-backed, asset-backed and CLO paper at ultra-short maturities, and pays income monthly.

Stated mandate

CLIP CLIP seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Solactive 1-3 month US T-Bill Index. It invests in U.S. government Treasury bills with remaining maturities from one month to under three months.

GSST The Fund seeks current income while preserving capital. It invests at least 80% of net assets in a broad range of U.S.-dollar-denominated bonds, including government, bank, corporate, short-term, mortgage-backed, asset-backed and CLO securities.

Why people hold it

• CLIP 0.07% a year, half the 0.14% median for its bill-fund cohort and half what category veteran BIL charges for the same one-to-three-month exposure.
• The mandate fits on one line: US Treasury bills maturing in one month to under three, roughly two dozen of them. Government paper only, no corporate credit slipped in.globalxetfs.com
• Sticks to the Solactive 1-3 month US T-Bill Index about as tightly as anything in its peer group, which is the entire job description for a bill fund.
• Distributes monthly, and it has already gathered billions in assets, so it is no thin-ice launch.

• GSST Not a bill ladder. At least 80% of net assets sit in dollar-denominated bonds spanning government, bank, corporate, mortgage-backed, asset-backed and CLO paper, with Goldman's fixed income team picking the mix.gsam.com
• Charges 0.16% net of a waiver through December 29, 2026, against a 0.20% gross fee. That sits near the typical charge in its 0-1 year category, which is unusual for an active mandate.
• Live since April 2019 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund, it spreads across roughly 300 positions and distributes monthly, so no single issuer carries the portfolio.
• Goldman measures it against the FTSE Three-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index, giving you a clean yardstick for what the active credit work is adding or costing versus plain bills.

Worth knowing

• CLIP Income comes straight off short-term Treasury rates. Monthly payouts move up and down with those rates rather than sitting at a fixed level.
• It opened in 2023, so the track record is short next to the bill funds it undercuts on fee.
• Volume is respectable, not the deepest in the cohort, and a hair cheaper exists (Vanguard's VBIL at 0.06%). At these fee levels the gap is rounding error.

• GSST Corporate, asset-backed and CLO holdings bring credit and liquidity risk that a pure Treasury bill fund does not carry. Preserving capital is the stated objective, not an assurance.
• Passive bill trackers cost less: VBIL at 0.06% and CLIP at 0.07%, neither under a waiver. Here you pay up for security selection, and GSST's own waiver has a stated end date.
• It is moderately traded rather than one of the category's heaviest-volume names, so limit orders and a glance at the spread earn their keep, especially on larger tickets.

Full CLIP profile⁠

Full GSST profile⁠