Q: What are the advantages and disadvantages for an investor to put all their funds in a "balanced ETF", i.e. Vanguard Balanced ETF Portfolio (VBAL.TO) or iShares Core Balanced ETF Portfolio (XBAL.TO)?
5i Research Answer:
VBAL has an AUM of $2.95B, an MER of 0.24%, a yield of 2.59%. XBAL, on the other hand, has a smaller AUM of $1.5B, a lower MER of 0.2%, and a yield of 2.91%. Over the long-term, XBAL has slightly outperformed VBAL. Overall, due to its higher yield, better performance, and lower MER, we would give XBAL the slight edge today.