The iShares J.P. Morgan $ EM Bond UCITS ETF (IEMB) is an Ireland-domiciled fixed-income ETF managed by BlackRock through its iShares platform. IEMB represents the fund's USD distributing share class traded in U.S. dollars on the London Stock Exchange.

The fund seeks to track the J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index Global Diversified Core, a benchmark comprising U.S. dollar-denominated bonds issued by emerging market countries.

The benchmark primarily includes U.S. dollar-denominated sovereign and quasi-sovereign emerging market debt. The portfolio includes both investment-grade and high-yield bonds, providing exposure to issuers with different levels of credit risk.

Composition / Exposure Profile

IEMB provides exposure to emerging market debt through:

• Sovereign bonds issued by governments.

• Quasi-sovereign bonds issued by government-related entities.

• U.S. dollar-denominated debt.

• Investment-grade and high-yield issuers.

• Countries across different regions of the world.

Geographic exposure spans emerging markets across Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, spreading the portfolio across economies with different sovereign credit profiles.

Because the underlying bonds are denominated in U.S. dollars, the fund does not have direct exposure to the local currencies of the issuing countries. However, economic and currency conditions in those markets can still affect issuers' creditworthiness and investor perceptions of their debt.

Structure and Costs

The fund and share class have the U.S. dollar as their base currency. On the London Stock Exchange, the distributing share class trades in USD under IEMB and in GBP under SEMB. The trading currency does not change the portfolio's underlying economic exposure or provide currency hedging.

The ETF has a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.45% per year, uses physical replication through representative sampling, and is domiciled in Ireland. It operates as part of iShares II plc under the UCITS framework.

IEMB follows a distributing income policy, with payments made monthly. Income generated by the bonds in the portfolio may therefore be periodically distributed to shareholders rather than fully reinvested within the fund.

History and Evolution of the ETF

The iShares J.P. Morgan $ EM Bond UCITS ETF USD (Dist) was launched in 2008 to provide diversified access to U.S. dollar-denominated emerging market debt through a single portfolio.

Since its launch, the fund has maintained a passive strategy linked to the J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index Global Diversified Core, tracking sovereign and quasi-sovereign bonds across different emerging market countries.

Throughout its history, IEMB's performance has reflected factors including changes in U.S. interest rates, sovereign credit spreads, economic conditions across emerging markets, global liquidity, and shifts in investor risk sentiment.

Additional Information

iShares J.P. Morgan $ EM Bond UCITS ETF USD (Dist) (Ireland) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF), with assets under management totaling $4.85 billion.

Over the past 12 months, iShares J.P. Morgan $ EM Bond UCITS ETF USD (Dist) recorded a return of -5.58%, with its price trading between $86.89 and $94.69 during the same period.

The ETF is traded under the ticker IEMB.