VNRT
Vanguard FTSE North America UCITS ETF (USD) Distributing
Published by Radif Partners · Updated
Overview
Vanguard FTSE North America UCITS ETF (USD) Distributing (VNRT) tracks the FTSE North America index and holds its constituents directly, a physical replication managed by Vanguard. Dividends are paid out to holders rather than reinvested, so VNRT suits investors seeking regular income. The fund is domiciled in IE, which determines the withholding tax treatment applied to its dividends. Annual charges come to 0.10% of assets, and the fund holds 6.8B under management. Over five years the fund returned 11.4% a year on average, against 19.3% over three years. It is not eligible for the French PEA, but can be held in a securities account, a UK ISA or a German Depot. Its risk level is rated medium. Launched on 2014-09-30, the fund is denominated in USD and has 12 years of track record. It is a UCITS fund, so it follows the European framework on diversification, liquidity and asset segregation. Because VNRT distributes, every payment is taxable in the year it is received, against the dividend allowance in a general account, while it stays sheltered inside an ISA or a SIPP. Domicile in IE sets the withholding the fund itself suffers on the dividends it receives, a cost absent from the stated fee but present in the return.
Ongoing charges of 0.10% place this fund 54th of 225 comparable funds, whose median is 0.20%. On £10,000 that costs about 10 a year and 100 over ten years at a constant amount, deducted daily and never visible on a statement: it shows up in the gap between the fund's return and its index's. At this level, neither low enough to be an argument nor high enough to be an obstacle, the decision rests elsewhere: on the index tracked, on the distribution policy, and on what your broker charges to buy.
Replication is physical: the fund actually holds the constituents of FTSE North America, which makes its contents verifiable line by line in the issuer's report. Two points deserve attention. Securities lending first, practised by most physical funds to reduce costs: it earns a few hundredths of a point and creates an exposure to the borrower, covered by collateral, with the annual report stating the proportion lent. Rebalancing second: every change in the index's composition forces the fund to buy and sell, and those internal costs are not in the 0.10% headline. That is why two funds at the same price do not track their index with the same fidelity.
The domicile, Ireland, is not an administrative detail: it determines the withholding tax the fund suffers on the dividends it receives, and that loss appears in no fee table. On US equities, the Ireland-US treaty cuts withholding from thirty to fifteen per cent, which on a world index is mechanically worth several tenths of a point a year and explains Irish dominance of this segment. For the holder, the UCITS framework also brings the key information document in their own language, diversification rules, and separation of the fund's assets from the issuer's.
Income is distributed: the fund pays out the dividends it receives, usually one to four times a year. For a holder living off the portfolio that is what is wanted, since the income arrives without selling. For someone still accumulating it is a tax disadvantage in a taxable account: each payment is taxed in the year received, so the amount reinvested is reduced before it starts working again. Reinvesting by hand also costs a dealing commission each time and often leaves cash idle for want of the price of a whole unit. An accumulating class on the same index, where one exists, settles the question.
With 6.8 billion in assets and 12 years of history, this fund has the size and the record that make closure unlikely and the spread narrow. Three checks remain, once a year, none of which depends on the market. The ongoing charge, which an issuer revises without notice and whose gap to a competitor can invert. The tracking difference, the only figure that says whether replication stays faithful. And the methodology of FTSE North America, which can change its selection or weighting rules without the fund's name moving, in which case what you hold has changed with nothing to announce it.
FTSE North America is a broad index, and that is the building block most portfolios have reason to own before any other, for a simple reason: it requires no forecast. Two points deserve checking before calling it diversified. Cap weighting concentrates the portfolio on the largest companies, so the top ten holdings can make up a substantial share, and that concentration grows without any rule changing. And the geographic scope matters: a developed-world index leaves out emerging markets, while a broad US index is not global exposure despite the international revenue of the companies it holds.
Over one year the fund shows 14.2% and over five years 11.4% annualised, two figures close together, which is the most ordinary and least informative configuration: it does not say the fund is steady, only that the chosen start and end points resemble each other. Comparing these figures with another fund means something only if the index is the same; otherwise it is an index comparison dressed as a fund comparison.
0.10%
6.8B
6,844M USDMedium
586
Physical
Distributing
USD
IE
FTSE North America
Vanguard
2014-09-30 (12 years)
Contextual Analysis
Fund Size
With 6.8B in assets, this is a large fund, good liquidity and tight spreads.
Fee Positioning
A TER of 0.10% is among the lowest on the market, excellent value.
Track Record
Launched in 2014-09-30, this fund has 12 years of history, long and reliable track record.
Risk Profile
Medium risk, good risk/return balance for a 5+ year horizon.
Performance
Returns Summary
| Period | Ann. Return | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Month (est.) | – | +1.1% |
| 3 Months (est.) | – | +3.4% |
| 6 Months (est.) | – | +6.8% |
| YTD (est.) | – | +5.7% |
| 1 Year | +14.2% | +14.2% |
| 3 Years | +19.3% | +69.7% |
| 5 Years | +11.4% | +71.6% |
| Since inception (12y) | +14.9% | +432.1% |
Key Facts
Fund Profile
Themes & Zones
Holdings
Risk
How to Buy This ETF
Select your country in the menu to see available brokers and wrappers.
About this ETF
The Vanguard FTSE North America UCITS ETF (USD) Distributing tracks the FTSE North America index. It is managed by Vanguard using physical replication and follows a distributing distribution policy. The fund is denominated in USD and domiciled in IE. It has a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.10%.
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Frequently asked questions
What do VNRT's 0.10% charges actually cost?
They are taken from the fund's value continuously and never billed separately: on £1,000 invested that is about £1.00 a year and roughly £10 over ten years at a constant amount. That is the only cost of the fund itself. Your broker's commission and the spread between buying and selling price come on top, and they weigh most on small frequent purchases.
What currency risk comes with VNRT?
The fund is denominated in USD, but the trading currency is not the risk: what counts is the currency in which the companies held earn their revenue. A euro-based investor therefore carries the gap between the euro and those currencies, and that gap appears in no return published in local currency. A hedged share class answers a different question, at a cost that varies with the interest rate gap.
How do you buy VNRT, and on which venue?
Through any broker that lists ISIN IE00BKX55R35. The same strategy often exists in several share classes with different fees and distribution policies, and what counts is the class you buy rather than the one you read about: check the ISIN, not the name. A limit order avoids paying the spread of a thin order book, particularly outside the trading hours of the underlying markets.
Is VNRT genuinely diversified?
Less so than the number of holdings suggests. FTSE North America weights its constituents by market capitalisation, so the largest companies make up a share of the fund far above their number, and that concentration deepens without any rule changing. The useful check is the weight of the top ten holdings, published monthly by Vanguard: that figure says how many companies the outcome actually depends on.
What should you re-check on VNRT once a year?
Three things, none of which depends on the market. The ongoing charge, which an issuer revises without notice and whose gap to a competitor can invert. The tracking difference, the only figure that says whether replication stays faithful. And the methodology of FTSE North America, which can change its selection or weighting rules without the fund's name moving: in that case what you hold has changed with nothing to announce it.
This ranking is for informational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Displayed performance is simulated.