FLIN vs NDIA

FLINAFranklin FTSE India ETF

NDIABGlobal X India Active ETF

In short

FLIN Franklin's India fund runs the whole large- and mid-cap market at 0.19% a year, a fraction of what most India ETFs charge. Same country, same index-tracking job, cheaper meter running.

NDIA Most India ETFs hand you an index and a few hundred names. NDIA is a stockpicker: about 30 companies chosen for business quality and domestic-driven growth, held on a four- to five-year view.

Stated mandate

FLIN The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the performance of the FTSE India RIC Capped Index.

NDIA The fund seeks long-term capital growth through active exposure to India, emphasizing companies with quality business models and management teams and domestic-driven growth over a four- to five-year horizon.

Why people hold it

• FLIN Charges 0.19% a year, well under the typical India ETF fee and under every other top-scoring fund in the group, including INDA, INDY and SMIN.
• Tracks the FTSE India RIC Capped Index with very little slippage, one of the tightest index-following records among India funds.
• Roughly 240 Indian stocks in one ticker, plus a billion-dollar-plus asset base and steady daily trading, so spreads stay manageable for ordinary orders.
• Live since 2018, giving it a multi-year track record through India's boom and its drawdowns rather than a fresh-off-the-line prospectus.

• NDIA Actively run, not index-shadowing. A concentrated book of roughly 30 Indian companies, selected for quality business models and management teams, with long-term capital growth as the stated goal.globalxetfs.com
• Costs 0.75% a year, level with the typical India ETF fee. Active stock selection at passive-median pricing is a rarer combination than it sounds.
• Does what the label says. Pure India equity, quality screen, domestic-growth tilt, with very little drift from the advertised brief compared with its single-country peers.globalxetfs.com

Worth knowing

• FLIN One country, one currency. Indian politics, rates and a moving rupee land directly in the price, with no other market to cushion the swing.
• The RIC Capped index trims oversized positions to meet US fund diversification rules, so returns can drift from an uncapped India benchmark.
• Distributions come annually or semiannually, and Indian large caps are not a high-payout market. This is a growth-exposure tool, not an income stream.

• NDIA Cheaper index routes to the same country exist: FLIN charges 0.19% and INDA 0.61%. The extra fee here buys a manager's judgment, not broader coverage.
• About 30 holdings means individual names carry real weight, and the whole portfolio rides one emerging market's economy and currency.
• Trades lightly next to the giant India index funds and launched in 2023, so spreads can be wider and the live track record is still short.

Full FLIN profile⁠

Full NDIA profile⁠