Update: Market Chatter: BlackRock, Vanguard Face Fee Pressure as European Banks Launch Own ETFs

07:03 AM EDT, 09/29/2026 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with BlackRock's response in the fifth paragraph.) BlackRock (BLK) and Vanguard face growing competition from European banks launching their own exchange-traded funds as they seek to retain more investment fees from retail customers, the Financial Times reported Tuesday. Santander (SAN), ING (ING), UniCredit and Commerzbank have launched ETFs or filed plans with regulators since the start of the year, while Revolut has registered a platform for ETFs and mutual funds, the report said. The banks are increasingly using their large retail customer bases to distribute own-brand funds instead of relying on third-party asset managers, according to the report. Germany's planned pension reforms are expected to direct an additional 40 billion euros ($45.38 billion) annually into the fund market, largely through ETFs, the FT reported. Brett Pybus, co-head of iShares Europe at BlackRock, said, "We do not rent out our iShares ETF platform, we continue to serve clients very effectively by focusing on what we do well, which is building quality products. Ultimately this will translate into benefits for a wide range of investor types in terms of tighter spreads, higher trading volumes or scale and diversification more broadly." Vanguard, Santander, ING, UniCredit and Commerzbank did not immediately respond to MT Newswires' requests for comment. (Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)