Following an agreement signed on 20 May between BNP Paribas and AXA Investment Managers, BNP will assume the operational management of all EasyETF exchange-traded funds.

This signifies the transfer of the management of 22 funds (in commodities, real estate, equity sector, credit and infrastructure) to BNP Paribas's asset management team from AXA.

The EasyETF range was set up as a partnership between the two firms in 2005, and now has €3.5 billion in assets under management, making it the sixth-largest European ETF provider.

Once the transaction is complete, the whole EasyETF range will be integrated and managed by a single management team within SIGMA, the index tracking, structured products and risk allocation department of BNP Paribas Asset Management.

Commenting on the transfer, Denis Panel, head of SIGMA, said, "BNP Paribas Group firmly believes in the development potential of the ETF market and that is why we are taking over the management of the EasyETF range. BNP Paribas is placing ETFs at the heart of its development, by bringing together the full range of its asset management and investment banking expertise. We maintain close relationships with the AXA Investment Management teams, to ensure the continuity of the management of our products and the protection of our clients."