SOFR vs TBLL

SOFRCAmplify Samsung SOFR ETF

TBLLAInvesco Short Term Treasury ETF

In short

SOFR The ticker is the mandate. Instead of owning a T-bill ladder and hoping it nets out to the overnight rate, this fund goes at the rate directly through Treasury-backed repurchase agreements, targeting SOFR after fees.

TBLL The bill fund that stretches to a full year. TBLL owns U.S. Treasuries maturing in one year or less and charges 0.08%, well under the typical fund in its 0-1 year Treasury group.

Stated mandate

SOFR The Fund seeks current income matching the returns of the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR), after fund expenses. It aims to closely replicate SOFR and expects to do so principally through repurchase agreements.

TBLL The fund invests primarily in U.S. Treasury obligations with maturities of one year or less and seeks exposure to the ICE U.S. Treasury Short Bond Index.

Why people hold it

• SOFR Rare literal mandate: seek current income matching the Secured Overnight Financing Rate after expenses, principally through repurchase agreements. No duration bet, no credit-spread hunt.amplifyetfs.com
• The portfolio matches the label. Repo against Treasury collateral, overnight in and overnight out, and it tracks the rate it names closely enough to rank in the upper half of cash-alternative funds.
• Income lands monthly, and the 0.20% fee sits right at the median for cash-alternative ETFs.

• TBLL Charges 0.08% a year against a 0.14% median for its 0-1 year Treasury cohort, and undercuts BIL, the 1-3 month bill fund at 0.14%.
• Fishes the entire under-one-year curve, about 90 Treasury positions, instead of camping in 1-3 month paper like much of the peer shelf.
• Live since 2017 and a multi-billion-dollar fund, with index tracking among the tighter implementations in its 17-fund group.
• Distributions land monthly, and the portfolio is Treasury obligations only, so no corporate credit rides along.

Worth knowing

• SOFR Thinly traded next to the cash-parking giants, so limit orders and a look at the spread matter more here.
• Payouts float with the overnight rate by design. When SOFR drops, what the fund passes through drops with it.
• Median fee, not a bargain one: ICSH charges 0.08%, JPST 0.18%, and several peers land at 0.15%.

• TBLL Not the cheapest seat in the row: XONE runs 0.03% and VBIL 0.06%, so the cost gap is a few basis points.
• Reaching out to one-year maturities carries slightly more interest-rate sensitivity than a strict 1-3 month bill portfolio.
• Moderately traded rather than the volume leader of its category, so spreads deserve a look on larger orders.

Full SOFR profile⁠

Full TBLL profile⁠