ICVT vs MCVT

ICVTAiShares Convertible Bond ETF

MCVTCMiller Convertible Total Return ETF

In short

ICVT Convertible bonds are corporate debt with a stock option attached. ICVT owns the plain-vanilla slice (cash-pay bonds, big issues only) by index, at 0.20% a year, the lowest fee among the handful of convertible ETFs on the market.

MCVT Convertibles handled by bond people, not stock people: Wellesley, a convertibles-only shop since 1991, hunts converts with put provisions, short maturities and issuer principal guarantees. Active where most rivals just index.

Stated mandate

ICVT The fund seeks to track an index of U.S. dollar-denominated convertible bonds with issue sizes above $250 million.

MCVT The fund seeks to maximize total return while limiting volatility and preserving principal. Its strategy uses convertible securities to combine income potential with capital appreciation.

Why people hold it

• ICVT 0.20% a year, against a category median of 0.80%. The next-cheapest convertible ETF, CWB, charges 0.40%, and the active options in the group run 0.69% to 0.95%.
• Rules, not hunches: it follows the Bloomberg U.S. Convertible Cash Pay Bond >$250MM Index and has tracked it closely, with no manager discretion in the mix.ishares.com
• The index takes only cash-pay converts above $250 million in issue size, screening out zero-coupon, preferred and mandatory structures plus called and defaulted paper.sec.gov
• A multi-billion-dollar fund trading a few hundred bonds, running since 2015 and paying distributions monthly.

• MCVT Bond-first mechanics: it targets convertibles with put provisions, remaining maturities generally under seven years, or an issuer guarantee of principal.sec.gov
• Active, not index-bound: the manager buys a convert when it sees a high probability the bond's principal is repaid at the put or at maturity.sec.gov
• Specialist bench: Wellesley has built its business around convertible bonds since 1991, and the founding family sits on the portfolio management team.wellesleyassetmanagement.commilleretf.com

Worth knowing

• ICVT Converts move with the issuer's stock. The bond floor cushions, but this behaves more like an equity-sensitive hybrid than a core bond fund.sec.gov
• Convertible issuers are often unrated or below investment grade, so credit risk sits inside the portfolio alongside the rate risk.ishares.com
• Cash-pay only means no convertible preferreds or mandatories, so it is a clean core slice rather than the entire convertible market.sec.gov

• MCVT Costs 0.85% a year, above the category's index choices such as ICVT (0.20%) and CWB (0.40%). You are paying for security selection, not market beta.
• New in ETF form (NYSE Arca, 2026) and small so far, so spreads and daily liquidity can run thinner than the category's index heavyweights.prnewswire.com
• Put provisions and principal guarantees are only as strong as the issuer behind them, so credit risk travels with the equity upside.sec.gov

Full ICVT profile⁠

Full MCVT profile⁠