槓桿ETF 香港美國兩種風景

If you would like to understand Asia’s affinity with derivatives, especially among its army of “mom-and-pop traders”, search for “CBBC.” Top of the internet listings, even above CBeebies, the BBC children’s TV channel beloved of parents, comes the Hong Kong CBBC platforms of the likes of Credit Suisse and HSBC.

如果你想了解亞洲對衍生品的喜愛，特別是“散戶”大軍對它的喜愛，那就搜索“CBBC”吧。排在互聯網搜索結果第一位的是瑞信(Credit Suisse)和匯豐(HSBC)等銀行的香港CBBC（callable bull-bear contracts，牛熊證）平臺，甚至超過深受家長喜愛的英國廣播公司(BBC)兒童頻道CBeebies。

Derivatives including Hong Kong’s callable bull-bear contracts highlight the gulf between east and west in terms of market behaviour and thinking. The best example of this is leveraged exchange traded funds, which are seeking space alongside the city’s booming CBBC market.

包括香港牛熊證在內的衍生品突顯出東西方在市場行爲與思維方式上的差異。最好的例子是槓桿交易所交易基金（槓桿ETF），它們正與香港蓬勃發展的牛熊證市場一起謀求發展空間。

The Hong Kong Exchange recently introduced its first leveraged ETF, ahead of Singapore and following in the footsteps of Seoul, Tokyo and Taipei, where business is booming. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 Leveraged Index ETF, the largest such fund in the world, grew so big at one point last year that it suspended investment for fear of swamping the futures market via which it produces its returns.

香港交易所(HKEx)最近推出了首批槓桿ETF，先於新加坡，而緊跟該業務正蓬勃發展的首爾、東京和臺北的步伐。在東京，日經225指數槓桿ETF(Nikkei 225 Leveraged Index ETF)是全球規模最大的槓桿ETF，去年其規模一度膨脹到暫停認購，因爲有關方面擔心其對股指期貨的需求會淹沒作爲其回報來源的期貨市場。

By contrast in the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission is planning to cut the leverage that funds can offer in an effort to protect retail investors. In June, Oppenheimer & Co paid $2.9m in fines and restitution for selling such complex ETFs to vulnerable savers.

相比之下在美國，美國證交會(SEC)計劃降低基金提供的槓桿比例，以保護散戶投資者。今年6月，奧本海默(Oppenheimer)因向脆弱的儲戶銷售複雜的ETF產品，被責令繳納290萬美元的罰款和賠償。

While the US first allowed leveraged ETFs in 2006 — three years before Seoul — they have not taken off in the same way as in Asia. They account for just 1 per cent of the US ETF industry’s assets under management and 9 per cent of its trading. Meanwhile In Seoul, leveraged funds represent 14 per cent of the total market and half the turnover, and in Tokyo, 7 per cent and 82 per cent respectively. In Taipei, which only allowed them two years ago, they represent 31 per cent of ETF assets and 76 per cent of trading activity.

儘管美國在2006年就批准了首隻槓桿ETF（比首爾早3年），但其發展並不像亞洲這樣迅速。它們僅佔美國ETF行業管理資產規模的1%，佔交易量的9%。而在首爾，槓桿ETF佔整個ETF市場的14%，佔成交量的一半，在東京這兩個數字分別爲7%和82%。在臺北（兩年前才放行），槓桿ETF佔ETF資產的31%，佔交易量的76%。

Leveraged ETFs aim to am-plify returns of the underlying assets through derivatives. Hong Kong’s are capped at two times leverage, meaning that if the underlying index gains, say, 5 per cent, an investor gets 10 per cent. The key is that the funds are essentially reset every day. This means that someone who holds the ETF for five days over which the index climbs a cumulative 5 per cent, will not automatically receive 10 per cent.

槓桿ETF通過衍生品放大標的資產的回報。香港最高允許兩倍槓桿，這意味着如果標的指數上漲5%，那麼投資者將獲得10%的收益。關鍵是這些基金基本是每天重新調整。這意味着如果投資者持有某隻槓桿ETF 五天，期間標的指數累計上漲5%，投資者並不會自動獲得10%的收益。

The main reason for Asia’s interest is many retail investors tend to think short-term. Almost a quarter of all South Korean stocks are still held directly by individuals, for example, while in Hong Kong, retail accounts for a fifth of all trading, compared with 2 per cent in New York.

亞洲對槓桿ETF感興趣的主要原因是很多散戶投資者往往是短線投資。例如，近四分之一的韓國股票仍直接由個人持有，在香港，散戶交易佔全部交易量的五分之一，紐約僅爲2%。

They are also accustomed to leverage and the concept of derivatives. In addition to pioneering leveraged ETFs in Asia, Seoul is also the world’s biggest market for single-name stock options. That occasionally gives its retail punters the power to move other markets — most recently in January, when bets via so-called autocallables weighed on European shares as well as Hong Kong ones.

他們對槓桿和有關衍生品的概念也習以爲常。除了是亞洲槓桿ETF的先鋒，首爾還是全球最大的單一股票期權市場。這偶爾會賦予首爾散戶撬動其他市場的能力——最近一次發生在今年1月，當時通過所謂“自動贖回”(autocallable)機制開展的押注行爲，給歐洲和香港股市帶來了極大壓力。

Brian Roberts, head of ETFs in the Hong Kong Exchange’s market development division, describes Asia’s interest in derivatives and leverage as a tactical, not strategic, approach. “When I look at US-based investors you see them being much more strategic in their asset allocation method and their investment decisions,” he said. “In Asia we see investors being much more tactical and far less having a strategic asset allocation mix.”

港交所市場開發部的ETF主管布萊恩•羅伯茨(Brian Roberts)稱，亞洲對衍生品和槓桿的興趣是一種戰術方法而不是戰略方法。他說：“觀察美國投資者時，你會看到他們在資產配置方法和投資決策上的戰略性強得多。在亞洲，我們發現投資者更偏重戰術，戰略性資產配置結構少見得多。”

Mr Roberts was speaking at a workshop held by the exchange to explain leveraged ETFs, and indeed, investor “education” has been a key part of the marketing push.

羅伯茨此番言論是在港交所主持的一個研討會上解釋槓桿ETF。事實上，投資者“教育”已成爲營銷的關鍵環節。

“In the early stage of [these] products in the US, there wasn’t that much focus on investor education . . . we have learnt from that,” says Sunghoon Koo, chief executive of Samsung Asset Management, which launched the first ones in Hong Kong, based on the Nikkei and Kospi indices.

三星資產運用(Samsung Asset Management)首席執行官Sunghoon Koo表示：“在美國（這類）產品推出的早期階段，對投資者教育的關注沒有那麼多……我們已從中學到教訓。”三星資產運用是在香港首發槓桿ETF的機構，其槓桿ETF掛鉤日本東證指數(Topix)和韓國綜合指數(Kospi)。

Turnover in Hong Kong so far is small with many investors waiting for regulators to allow products based on Hong Kong indices — China, in other words. Still, as a Goo-gle search shows, the overall retail derivatives business is booming. As of Wednesday, “CBBC warrants” brought up the platforms of Société Générale, Macquarie, BNP Paribas, JPMorgan and UBS — not names known for bothering with small-time markets. Whether mom and pop embrace leveraged ETFs in Hong Kong or not, it appears the Asian and US markets are set to go in different directions.

由於許多投資者在等待監管機構批准基於香港指數（也即押注中國市場）的產品，到目前爲止香港的成交量還很小。不過，正如谷歌(Google)搜索所顯示的，零售衍生品業務總體正在迅猛發展。截至上週三，“牛熊證”市場出現了法國興業銀行(Société Générale)、麥格理銀行(Macquarie)、巴黎銀行(BNP Paribas)、摩根大通(JPMorgan)和瑞銀(UBS)等平臺——這些名字可不是以肯費力參與小規模市場而聞名。不論香港散戶是否接受槓桿ETF，亞洲和美國市場似乎註定走上不同的方向。