EMES vs JEMA

EMESCHarbor Emerging Markets Select ETF (EMES)

JEMAAJPMorgan ActiveBuilders Emerging Markets Equity ETF

In short

EMES Harbor's active take on emerging markets: roughly 50 stocks instead of a sprawling index, priced at the middle of the active EM pack rather than the premium end. Launched in 2025.

JEMA Active emerging-markets management priced like an index fund: J.P. Morgan blends its own country, region and style EM strategies into one roughly 500-stock portfolio built to keep the MSCI EM index's sector and country risk shape.

Stated mandate

EMES The Fund invests primarily in equity securities, principally common stocks, of companies in emerging markets.

JEMA Seeks long-term capital appreciation through a portfolio of emerging-market equities.

Why people hold it

• EMES Concentrated by design. Roughly 50 emerging-market stocks means each name actually moves the fund, unlike broad EM indexes where a single pick barely registers.
• At 0.65%, the fee lands right at the middle of actively managed EM funds. Active stock picking without the premium price tag some active EM shops charge.
• Its short life so far shows steadier drawdown and volatility behavior than most active EM rivals, and it grades out in the upper half of that peer group.

• JEMA 0.33% a year, about half the 0.65% median for active EM funds and level with the cheapest names in the group (AVEM, AVXC, AVSE).
• Not one manager's hunch: the portfolio stitches together a range of J.P. Morgan's actively managed EM strategies across countries, regions and styles.sec.gov
• Active tilts, benchmark shape. It overweights and underweights countries and sectors versus the MSCI EM index while aiming to hold similar sector and geographic risk.sec.gov
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that stands among the strongest implementations in the active EM group on cost and structure.

Worth knowing

• EMES Launched in May 2025, so there is no full market cycle to judge. The risk picture rests on about a year of data, which is a thin sample for emerging markets.
• Small asset base and thin trading. Fewer shares changing hands can mean wider gaps between the buy and sell price, especially on larger orders.
• Systematic peers cost about half: AVEM and AVXC at 0.33%, DFEM at 0.39%. You are paying up for a concentrated stock-picking approach over broad quant exposure.

• JEMA Active means results ride on the adviser's calls, and the fund has only been trading since 2021, a short record for an EM strategy.sec.gov
• Full-market EM exposure runs hot: volatility screens as the softer part of the picture next to peers, the trade-off for staying in the whole asset class.
• Moderately traded rather than a tape giant, and cash comes back once or twice a year, not monthly.

Full EMES profile⁠

Full JEMA profile⁠