IGSB vs LDRC

IGSBAiShares 1-5 Year Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF

LDRC—iShares iBonds 1-5 Year Corporate Ladder ETF

In short

IGSB Corporate credit with the rate risk dialed down: roughly 4,700 investment-grade bonds, none maturing past five years, for four basis points. iShares has run it since 2007.

LDRC A bond ladder, prebuilt. LDRC holds a stack of iShares iBonds term funds, so investment-grade corporate maturities under six years sit inside one ticker at 0.10% a year.

Stated mandate

IGSB The fund seeks to track an index containing U.S. dollar-denominated investment-grade corporate bonds with remaining maturities from one through five years.

LDRC The fund seeks to track an index of iShares iBonds Corporate ETFs with maturities under six years, providing an investment-grade corporate-credit bond ladder.

Why people hold it

• IGSB Four basis points a year, a fraction of the typical investment-grade corporate bond fund's fee and level with the cheapest tier of its peer group.
• One-to-five-year maturities mean prices move less when rates move than long-dated corporate funds. Same corporate credit, shorter leash.ishares.com
• Thousands of individual bonds tracking the ICE BofA 1-5 Year US Corporate Index, with income paid monthly.ishares.com
• Trading since 2007, actively traded, and one of the strongest builds in the investment-grade corporate group on cost, portfolio and execution.

• LDRC One ticker, one ladder: it tracks an index of iShares iBonds corporate funds, each holding bonds that mature in a set year, stretching out to just under six years.ishares.com
• 0.10% a year, below the median fee in the investment-grade corporate bond group, and modest for a wrapper that bundles several underlying funds.
• Maturities stay under six years, keeping it off the long end of the corporate curve where prices move most when rates shift. Income is paid monthly.

Worth knowing

• IGSB Short maturities cut both ways: less price damage when rates rise, less lift when they fall.
• These are company bonds, not Treasuries. Investment grade, but credit spreads can widen and prices move with them.
• Only the front of the curve. Sibling IGIB runs 5-10 years and USIG spans broad maturities, both at the same fee.

• LDRC Young (launched November 2024) and thinly traded next to the category's household names, which can mean wider spreads at the moment you trade.
• Cost is the trade-off for structure: plain short-term corporate funds such as IGSB charge less, but hold one bucket of maturities instead of dated rungs.
• Still corporate credit. Investment grade, but downgrades and widening spreads show up in the price, and a fund-of-funds layer sits between you and the bonds.

Full IGSB profile⁠

Full LDRC profile⁠