XShares Group LLC.
Client: XShares Group LLC.
Sector: Financial Services
Transaction: Series C Preferred $23.5 million
XShares Group LLC ("XShares") is a financial services firm focused on developing exchange-traded funds and other specialty financial products. XShares Advisors LLC, its wholly owned subsidiary, provides investment advisory services to exchange-traded funds. To take advantage of expanding demand for ETFs, the company offers proprietary or jointly-developed ETFs exploiting promising niches organized by sector, geography, or financial/legal attribute; a "private label" ETF business and the creation of ETFs within a money manager's existing investment mandate. Like other asset management firms, (e.g. Fidelity, Vanguard, etc.), XShares generates revenue by earning a percentage of assets under management ("AUM") from each ETF for which it acts as the investment advisor.
Through a related entity, Broadmark was an investor in XShares' Series B financing in early 2007. Since that time, Broadmark has been deeply involved in building XShares and has facilitated a number of international financing rounds for the company including an $18-million transaction in August 2007 and a $5.5-million financing in December 2007. Joseph L. Schocken, President of Broadmark, currently serves as a Director of the company.