EWS vs FLCA

EWSBiShares MSCI Singapore ETF

FLCAAFranklin FTSE Canada ETF

In short

EWS One of the 1996 originals, still doing the same job: Singapore's large and mid caps in one ticker. Index rules cap any single issuer at 25%, which matters in a market this top-heavy.

FLCA Canada in one ticker, at index-fund pricing. FLCA tracks the FTSE Canada Capped Index, about 50 large- and mid-cap Canadian names, for 0.09% a year.

Stated mandate

EWS The fund seeks to track an index composed of Singaporean equities, providing targeted exposure to companies in Singapore.

FLCA The fund seeks to track the FTSE Canada Capped Index, which measures the performance of Canadian large- and mid-capitalization stocks.

Why people hold it

• EWS Launched in March 1996, making it one of the first single-country ETFs ever listed in the US. Decades later it is still a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively.aaii.com
• One ticker for the Singapore market: it tracks the MSCI Singapore 25/50 Index, the large and mid cap slice, with no stock picking and no hunting down foreign listings.ishares.com
• The 25/50 index rules are a real feature: no issuer above 25% of the index, and issuers over 5% capped at 50% combined, reset at quarterly rebalances.msci.com
• Sits in the upper half of the developed single-country group, with the trading depth and operational backing that come with a long-tenured BlackRock fund.

• FLCA 0.09% a year against a 0.45% median for index-tracking ETFs. On plain-vanilla country exposure, the fee gap is most of the story.
• The mandate is refreshingly plain: the FTSE Canada Capped Index, Canadian large and mid caps, no factor tilts, no derivatives overlay.
• Live since 2017 and one of the stronger implementations in a crowded field of index trackers.

Worth knowing

• EWS The 0.50% expense ratio sits right at the middle of its peer group, but index rivals such as FLAU and FLKR charge 0.09%. Country access here is not the cheap end of the shelf.
• One country, one compact basket. BlackRock notes funds concentrated in a specific market or sector can be more volatile than the broad market.ishares.com
• Cash comes back once or twice a year, not monthly, and the holdings trade in Singapore dollars, so currency swings ride along with the stocks.ishares.com

• FLCA About 50 stocks in one country. That is a targeted slice of the world, not a diversified core.
• Mid-sized and moderately traded, so limit orders are the sane way in and out.
• Distributions arrive once or twice a year rather than quarterly, which matters if you spend the income.

Full EWS profile⁠

Full FLCA profile⁠