Horizons ETFs Management (USA) LLC, a subsidiary of Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., Ltd. has entered into a definitive agreement with InterBolsa USA Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of Grupo InterBolsa to launch a joint venture, Horizons ETFs Management (LATAM) LLC (Horizons LatAm), which will sponsor and manage exchange traded funds (ETFs) in Latin America.

Horizons LatAm will initially focus on listing ETFs in the Colombian market. Horizons USA will have an 80% interest in Horizons LatAm, while InterBolsa USA Holdings have a 20% interest.

Horizons USA is an affiliate of Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc. and its subsidiaries including Horizons Exchange Traded Funds Inc. The Horizons ETFs Group and its affiliates currently have ETF businesses in five countries and oversee approximately $5.5 billion in assets across 180 ETF listings. Horizons LatAm will be the Horizons ETFs Group’s first entry into the Latin American ETF market.

Grupo InterBolsa has capital markets and insurance businesses in Colombia, and has also presence in Brazil and Panama. Grupo InterBolsa oversees approximately $4.5 billion in assets on behalf of nearly 70,000 clients.

“We are pleased to partner with InterBolsa in launching our Latin American ETF business. Latin America is one of the fastest growing economic regions in the world, and Colombia in particular has seen rapid growth in their economy and capital markets,” said Adam Felesky, who will serve as Chairman of Horizons LatAm. “InterBolsa is a very well-established investment management firm and securities broker in Colombia, and we will rely heavily on their extensive regional expertise to help us bring world-class ETF solutions to the Latin American market.”

The launch of ETFs in Colombia is a key strategic piece of Mirae’s current global ETF expansion initiative and complements the overall global firm strategy.

“Mirae is well-known as an emerging market specialist that has been able to capitalize on emerging market growth around the world. Colombia and the wider Latin American region offer some of the most attractive growth opportunities for investment management firms,” said Taeyong Lee, president of Mirae’s Global Business Unit. “We think Horizons LatAm will complement our other established ETF businesses which already have ETFs listed in Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, and Canada.”

While immediate ETF launches have not been announced, Horizons LatAm is targeting the first quarter of 2013 for the launch of its first ETFs.