It is an active ETF that uses the MSCI EM Index as its comparison benchmark and invests most of its assets in stocks of companies in emerging markets outside the US. The management team selects stocks through a bottom-up approach that combines fundamental and quantitative analysis.

It suits long-term investors who want exposure to emerging-market growth and prefer active management based on value-oriented selection.

It is an ETF run by One Ascent using an active (actively managed) approach.

Under normal market conditions, the fund invests most of its assets in stocks of emerging-market companies and builds its portfolio through bottom-up stock selection that combines fundamental and quantitative analysis. Rather than simply tracking an index, it reflects the discretionary judgment of the management team in pursuit of long-term capital growth.

• Active management reflecting a value-based selection philosophy
• A portfolio composition differentiated from the MSCI EM

Assets under management (AUM) are $127.9M, and the total expense ratio is 1.25% per year.

Compared with passive emerging-market ETFs, it reflects the management team's discretion, and because of its active management, the expense burden is somewhat higher.

Emerging-market stocks are affected by economic conditions outside the US, exchange rates, and commodity prices, so they tend to be highly volatile. Depending on the results of active stock selection, performance can differ from the comparison index. Short-term movements depend on global risk appetite.

Demand for emerging-market exposure fluctuates with the global asset allocation environment and the strength of the dollar, and money tends to flow in when risk appetite rises. As a small-to-mid-sized ETF in its category, it sees relatively large swings in fund flows.

Its strengths are value-based active management and diversified emerging-market exposure, while its weaknesses are the expense burden and the volatility inherent in emerging markets.

Comparable products in the same emerging-market category shown in the table include FNDE, XSOE, and EMGF, which are index-based, lower-cost passive emerging-market ETFs. If you want broad emerging-market exposure at an even lower expense ratio, you can consider the leading passive ETFs VWO and IEMG as direct substitutes, and if you want different country weightings, you can also look at variants such as XSOE in the table.

Here are the points to review before investing in OAEM. Because it is an active ETF with emerging-market exposure, it is advisable to check the expense burden, the management approach, and the risks specific to emerging markets in advance.

Political, currency, and liquidity volatility in emerging markets, together with exchange-rate movements, are the main drivers of short-term volatility. Because of its active management, you should also consider the possibility that performance diverges significantly from the comparison index.

It is a suitable choice for long-term investors who want active emerging-market exposure through value-based selection. To lower the expense burden, VWO and IEMG, which are passive emerging-market ETFs, are options, while OAEM is the one to consider if active selection matters more.