Rising Short Interest and Record Distributions: Inside John Hancock’s Fundamental All Cap Core ETF & Closed‑End Fund Payout Boom
Background: John Hancock’s Active ETF Experiment John Hancock Investment Management, the asset‑management arm of Manulife, is known for its multi‑manager approach. On 2 November 2023 the firm expanded its ETF lineup by launching two actively managed funds, including the Fundamental All Cap Core ETF (JHAC). According to John Hancock, JHAC is its first semi‑transparent ETF: it publishes a tracking basket of securities rather than disclosing full holdings daily, allowing managers to hide proprietary strategies and reduce front‑running risk johnhancock.com. The fund is managed by Emory W. (Sandy) Sanders Jr., CFA and Jonathan T. White, CFA, co‑leaders of the U.S. Core Value Equity Team at Manulife Investment Management johnhancock.com. Their mandate is