IDGT vs IGF

IDGTBiShares U.S. Digital Infrastructure and Real Estate ETF

IGFAiShares Global Infrastructure ETF

In short

IDGT The internet has a physical body: data centers, cell towers, and the gear that wires them together. IDGT owns that hardware layer in roughly 25 U.S.-listed names, at a lower fee than the typical infrastructure fund.

IGF About 80 developed-market infrastructure companies in one ticker, tracked against the S&P Global Infrastructure Index since 2007, for 0.37% a year (well under the category norm).

Stated mandate

IDGT The fund seeks exposure to U.S.-listed companies that own, operate, or provide infrastructure supporting the storage, processing, transmission, and access of digital data.

IGF The Fund seeks to track an index of developed-market equities focused on the infrastructure industry.

Why people hold it

• IDGT Charges 0.37% a year against a 0.55% median for infrastructure ETFs, so the theme costs less than the category norm.
• Tracks an S&P index built for exactly this job: data centers, tower REITs and communications equipment. No roads, no bridges, no utilities padding the basket.ishares.com
• Blends REIT landlords with the equipment makers that supply them, pairing rent-style income with hardware exposure. Pays shareholders quarterly.
• Sits in the top quartile of the infrastructure funds we grade, helped by a low fee and an established iShares operating record.

• IGF Costs 0.37% a year against a cohort median of 0.55%, so the toll on a long hold is smaller than most infrastructure funds charge.
• The one other fund on the same S&P Global Infrastructure Index, GII, charges 0.40%. Same benchmark, cheaper wrapper here.
• Trading since December 2007, now a multi-billion-dollar, actively traded fund that has tracked its index closely.
• Goes global where the biggest peers stay home: IFRA and PAVE are US-only, while this one spans developed markets worldwide.

Worth knowing

• IDGT Around 25 holdings means a handful of tower and data center names drive most of the outcome. Concentration cuts both directions.
• REIT-heavy and rate-sensitive by construction, so it can move very differently from a diversified roads-and-utilities infrastructure fund such as IGF or PAVE.
• U.S.-listed companies only, and trading volume is moderate rather than heavy, so spreads can run wider than the cohort's most active funds.

• IGF About 80 holdings in one industry. A concentrated basket, so a bad stretch for utilities or transport operators shows up fast.
• Distributions arrive once or twice a year, not monthly, and foreign holdings bring currency swings along with the dividends.
• Developed markets only. The fast-building infrastructure of emerging economies sits outside the mandate.

Full IDGT profile⁠

Full IGF profile⁠