Recent developments in exchange‐traded fund literature

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a brief review of three strands of the literature on exchange‐traded funds.Design/methodology/approachThe paper starts with a review of the history of the growth of exchange‐traded funds and their characteristics. The paper then examines the key factors and findings of the existing studies on, respectively, the pricing efficiency, the tracking ability/performance, and the impact on underlying securities of exchange‐traded funds.FindingsAlthough there has been a substantial amount of research conducted to advance our knowledge on the trading, management, and effect of exchange‐traded funds, the findings are still far from conclusive in addressing a number of research questions.Practical implicationsInvestors and other market participants will find this review informative in enhancing the understanding of exchange‐traded funds.Originality/valueBy highlighting the general theme of the related research findings, the paper provides a systematic review of the existing literature that future researchers can utilize in developing their research agenda.