TBLL vs TUSB

TBLLAInvesco Short Term Treasury ETF

TUSBBThrivent Ultra Short Bond ETF

In short

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.

TUSB An actively managed ultra-short bond fund in a category dominated by index-tracking T-bill parking spots. Thrivent's bond desk picks the investment-grade paper itself, charges the category's typical price, and sends the income out monthly.

Stated mandate

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.

TUSB The Fund seeks substantial current income while preserving capital.

Why people hold it

• 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.

• TUSB Active by design: managers select the investment-grade bonds and keep dollar-weighted average maturity at two years or less, instead of tracking an index.investing.com
• 0.20% a year, level with the typical ultra-short bond ETF, for active credit selection rather than an index feed.
• Cash flow lands monthly, and the stated job is plain: substantial current income while preserving capital.
• What it holds lines up closely with what its prospectus says it does, and it stands in the upper half of the ultra-short bond group.

Worth knowing

• 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.

• TUSB Thinly traded next to the category's giants, so spreads can be wider and larger orders need more care.
• Index-based rivals undercut it on fees: VUSB at 0.10%, SHV at 0.15%. The 0.20% here buys active management, not a lower sticker.
• It owns corporate credit, not only Treasuries, so the share price moves with rates and credit spreads. This is not a money market fund with a fixed price.investing.com

Full TBLL profile⁠

Full TUSB profile⁠