iPath Series B Bloomberg Cotton Subindex Total Return ETN

Frequently Asked Questions About BAL

What does BAL invest in?

The ETN offers exposure to futures contracts and not direct exposure to the physical commodities. The index is composed of one or more futures contracts on the relevant commodity (the “index components”) and is intended to reflect the returns that are potentially available through (1) an unleveraged investment in those contracts plus (2) the rate of interest that could be earned on cash collateral invested in specified Treasury Bills.

What is the expense ratio of BAL?

iPath Series B Bloomberg Cotton Subindex Total Return ETN (BAL) charges an expense ratio of 0.45%. This is the annual fee deducted from fund assets to cover management and operations.

How big is BAL?

iPath Series B Bloomberg Cotton Subindex Total Return ETN (BAL) manages $4.8M in total assets. AUM determines bid-ask liquidity and the fund's vulnerability to closure — funds below ~$50M are at higher risk of liquidation.

Is BAL actively managed or an index fund?

BAL is a passive index fund — it tracks a published benchmark by holding the constituents in their published weights. Index funds typically charge low expense ratios (BAL's is 0.45%) because there's no security selection cost.

When was BAL launched?

iPath Series B Bloomberg Cotton Subindex Total Return ETN (BAL) launched in January 2018 and is managed by iPath.

How has BAL performed?

BAL's total return — price change plus reinvested distributions — is charted at the top of this page. Switch the price chart to Total Return and pick a 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, or 10-year window to read the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over each horizon.