EDGF vs IUSB

EDGFD3EDGE Dynamic Fixed Income ETF

IUSBAiShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF

In short

EDGF A bond fund built to move. 3EDGE's macro model shifts the mix across Treasuries, TIPS, investment grade and high yield, using other bond ETFs as building blocks. Flexibility priced at 0.79%, with no fee waiver in the mix.

IUSB Most core bond funds stop at investment grade. IUSB keeps going, folding high-yield USD debt into the same wrapper across roughly 18,000 bonds, for 0.06% a year.

Stated mandate

EDGF The Fund seeks high current income. It dynamically invests across multiple fixed-income sectors through selected ETFs, with allocations adjusted using a quantitative and dual-momentum process.

IUSB The Fund seeks to track an index of U.S.-dollar-denominated bonds spanning investment-grade and high-yield sectors.

Why people hold it

• EDGF Go-anywhere mandate: at least 80% in bonds, with credit quality and duration actively dialed up or down rather than pinned to an index.sec.gov
• Runs as a fund of funds, so the holdings are liquid, published bond ETFs picked on index, credit quality and duration, not an opaque bond sleeve.sec.gov
• The 0.79% fee is the real fee: net equals gross, with no waiver propping it up and no step-up risk when one lapses.
• Seeks current income and pays quarterly.

• IUSB 0.06% a year, a fraction of what the typical broad bond fund in its category charges, and iShares has run it since 2014.
• Roughly 18,000 bonds spanning investment-grade and high-yield sectors, so one ticker covers ground a plain Agg tracker leaves on the table.ishares.com
• Tracks its index closely, trades heavily, and sits on a multi-billion-dollar asset base. Income is paid monthly.
• Among the strongest implementations in a crowded field of nearly 200 core bond funds.

Worth knowing

• EDGF Cost is the hurdle: 0.79% against AGG, BND, SPAB and SCHZ at 0.03%, and above the category median fee.
• Allocations shift with the model, so results can look nothing like a plain Agg tracker in either direction.sec.gov
• Young fund, launched in October 2024, so there is little history across different rate environments.

• IUSB That high-yield sleeve is the trade-off: more credit risk than an investment-grade-only fund, and more movement when spreads widen.
• BND, SPAB and SCHZ charge 0.03%, half IUSB's fee, but they stay inside investment grade.
• Payouts land monthly, but the amount floats with the coupons underneath. Nothing about the income stream is fixed.

Full EDGF profile⁠

Full IUSB profile⁠