Equity market volatility can prompt even experienced investors to act hastily. Sharp market swings often trigger emotional responses—buying at highs out of fear of missing out or selling in panic to limit losses. These instinctive moves rarely help long-term financial goals. Emotion is an investor’s enemy: impulsive choices can undermine portfolio performance over time.
Removing emotion from decision-making and adopting a disciplined, process-driven approach can reduce mistakes and ease anxiety. One practical way to do this is through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). ETFs are pooled funds that hold a basket of stocks and bonds, similar to mutual funds, but trade on public exchanges like individual stocks. Investors buy units of an ETF to gain exposure to the securities it holds, while the ETF issuer charges a management fee included in the management expense ratio (MER).
Because ETFs trade intraday, their prices fluctuate throughout the day, providing liquidity and flexibility. They are managed by professional investment teams that research markets, select securities, and implement portfolio strategies—allowing investors to delegate many technical and time-consuming tasks. For many Canadians, ETFs have become a go-to solution for building diversified portfolios efficiently and cost-effectively.
Canadian ETF inflows have surged in recent years, with investors contributing record amounts into ETF products. Issuers are responding by offering broader and more creative ways to access markets across sectors, regions and investment styles. One such product type is the all-in-one ETF—a single ticket that blends multiple underlying ETFs to deliver diversified exposure and simplified management. Examples include Fidelity’s All-in-One ETFs such as Fidelity All-in-One Balanced ETF (FBAL) and Fidelity All-in-One Growth ETF (FGRO).
All-in-one ETFs typically combine lower-cost underlying ETFs into a single portfolio with a defined investment objective and target asset mix. They are designed to provide broad, globally diversified exposure to equities and fixed income while offering the convenience of professional allocation and ongoing rebalancing.
Below are five practical benefits of all-in-one ETFs and how they can make investing simpler and more disciplined.
1. The investments have been selected for you.
Most retail investors don’t have the time or resources to analyze individual securities, track company fundamentals, interpret economic data and follow market trends across global markets. All-in-one ETFs let professionals do that work. For example, FBAL and FGRO are structured as one-ticket solutions diversified across regions, market capitalizations and investment styles, and benefit from professional portfolio management.
FBAL is positioned for investors seeking a balanced allocation with lower-to-medium risk. As of Oct. 31, 2023, its target mix included roughly 59% global equities, 39% global fixed income and about 2% allocation to cryptocurrencies. FGRO suits investors with longer time horizons and a higher tolerance for risk. As of Oct. 31, 2023, FGRO emphasized equities more heavily—about 82% global equities, 15% global fixed income and roughly 3% cryptocurrencies.
2. All-in-one ETFs are easy to buy and sell.
ETFs trade on stock exchanges, so you can buy or sell them throughout market hours using a brokerage account—whether that’s an online discount broker or a full-service dealer. Account fees and transaction costs vary by provider, but the trading flexibility of ETFs makes them practical for investors saving for retirement, a major purchase, or other long-term goals. Choosing an all-in-one ETF can simplify the process: you make a single investment decision and obtain diversified exposure in one trade.
3. No need to rebalance—it’s done for you.
Rebalancing a multi-asset portfolio requires ongoing attention and skill. All-in-one ETFs often include rebalancing as part of their mandate, which removes the burden from individual investors and helps prevent emotionally driven, ill-timed adjustments. A Fidelity All-in-One ETF, for example, mixes underlying low-cost Fidelity ETFs and rebalances to target allocations, reducing the chance that investors will drift from their intended risk profile or react impulsively to market noise.
These ETFs typically target a variety of equity factors—such as value, momentum, low volatility and quality—while the fixed income sleeve offers diversification and potential downside protection in turbulent markets.
4. You can hold ETFs in different types of investment accounts.
ETFs can be held in both non-registered and registered accounts. Registered accounts offer tax advantages that help Canadians grow savings more efficiently. Common registered account types include tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs), registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), first home savings accounts (FHSAs), registered education savings plans (RESPs), and others. Holding an all-in-one ETF inside a registered account can combine tax efficiency with simplified portfolio management.
5. An all-in-one ETF saves us from our own human nature.
Behavioural finance highlights a consistent truth: one of the biggest risks to investment success is investor behavior itself. Emotions can drive decisions—chasing short-term trends, reacting to headlines, or trying to time daily market swings—all of which can erode returns. All-in-one ETFs act as an antidote to emotional investing by providing a pre-set, professionally managed allocation that reduces the urge to tinker with your portfolio during market turbulence.
By investing in an all-in-one ETF, you worry less about whether your portfolio is overexposed to a particular region or sector, or whether it captures important long-term growth drivers. Each Fidelity All-in-One ETF is managed to deliver diversified exposure across regions, market caps and investment styles, with professional management and rebalancing built in. This lets you stay focused on long-term goals while experts manage the day-to-day allocation decisions.
Read more on investing:
- Building a “core and explore” portfolio with an all-in-one ETF
- Using ETFs to get the most out of your TFSA contribution room
- What’s the average monthly retirement income in Canada?
- Taking an active approach to ETF investing in Canada
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Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees, brokerage fees and expenses may be associated with investments in ETFs. Please read the ETF’s prospectus for detailed investment information before investing. Indicated rates of return are historical annual compounded total returns for the period indicated, including changes in unit value and reinvestment of distributions. They do not account for sales, redemption, distribution or option charges or income taxes payable by any unitholder that would have reduced returns. ETFs are not guaranteed; their values change frequently, and investors may experience a gain or a loss. Past performance may not be repeated.
The management fees directly payable by Fidelity All-in-One ETFs are nil. These ETFs invest in other underlying Fidelity ETFs that charge a direct management fee and/or administration fee. Based on the weightings of underlying Fidelity ETFs, it is expected that the effective indirect management and/or administration fee will be approximately 0.35% for the Conservative ETF, 0.36% for the Balanced ETF, 0.38% for the Growth ETF and 0.39% for the Equity ETF. Actual indirect fees may be higher or lower than these estimates due to performance of the underlying ETFs, rebalancing events and changes to strategic allocation. Actual indirect fees are reflected in the management expense ratio and posted semi-annually.
Each Fidelity All-in-One ETF has a neutral mix that includes a small allocation to Fidelity Advantage Bitcoin ETF™ ranging between 1% and 3%. If a portfolio deviates from its neutral mix by greater than 5% between annual rebalances, it will be rebalanced. Rebalancing may not occur immediately upon crossing the threshold but will occur shortly thereafter.
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