INDE vs SMIN

INDECMatthews India Active ETF INDE

SMINAiShares MSCI India Small-Cap ETF

In short

INDE Most India ETFs just buy the index. INDE hires stock pickers instead: Matthews Asia managers build the India portfolio by hand, free to hold common stock, preferred shares or convertibles. Launched in 2023, it's the active outlier in a cohort of trackers.

SMIN Most US-listed India funds stop at the blue chips. SMIN keeps going down-cap, tracking an MSCI index of roughly 500 smaller Indian companies, and it has been doing that job since 2012.

Stated mandate

INDE The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation by investing at least 80% of net assets in common stocks, preferred stocks, and convertible securities of companies located in India.

SMIN The fund seeks to track the investment results of an index representing small-capitalization equity securities in India.

Why people hold it

• INDE Real active management in an index-dominated group: managers choose the names, with room to hold preferred shares and convertibles alongside common stock.
• Does what the label says. At least 80% of net assets go to companies located in India, and the portfolio has stuck closely to that mandate.
• Plain equity exposure. No leverage, no options overlay, no structural wrinkles in the mandate, just Indian company shares chosen for long-term capital appreciation.

• SMIN Owns the slice of India the headline funds skip: roughly 500 small caps, versus the 50-name blue-chip lineup at INDY.ishares.com
• At 0.74%, the fee lands right around the middle of the US India-fund pack, which is unusual for a specialist small-cap sleeve.
• One of the stronger implementations among US-listed India funds: tight tracking of its stated index, iShares plumbing, and a live record back to 2012.

Worth knowing

• INDE At 0.79% a year it costs more than index rivals like FLIN (0.19%) and INDA (0.61%), and it currently sits behind those cheaper trackers in our peer group review.
• Small and thinly traded next to the big India funds, so spreads can be wider and sizeable orders can push the price around.
• It opened in 2023, so the track record is short, and payouts come once or twice a year rather than as a regular income stream.

• SMIN Small caps inside one emerging market swing hard in both directions, and rupee moves stack on top of the stock moves.
• Reasonable for the niche, pricey next to broad India trackers: FLIN charges 0.19% for the large-cap version of the trade.
• Moderately traded rather than a top-of-book giant, so size your orders with care. Cash comes back once or twice a year, not monthly.

Full INDE profile⁠

Full SMIN profile⁠