In Episode 80, we are joined by two benchmark experts, Karl Schneider, Senior Portfolio Manager at State Street Investment Management, and Jeremy Lai, Portfolio Trader at TD Securities. In this episode, Karl and Jeremy discuss all aspects of index provider decisions to fast-track mega-cap IPOs into benchmarks including S&P's proposal which remains an outlier and the need to have flexible inclusion rules for both new additions and large lock up share releases. Jeremy outlines the details making May 29 the largest MSCI rebalance in history, while Karl addresses the busy calendar of events in June including the inclusion of the first of many mega-cap IPOs and the need to ensure there is enough broker capital to satisfy the expected demands of the passive community. Jeremy finishes up with some trading advice to fundamental investors who might want to take advantage of some of the market activity from indexers.
This podcast was recorded on May 14th, 2026.
Chapter Headings
03:45 Mega-Cap Index Inclusion – Trade-off between Representation and Investability
07:01 S&P Remains Outlier in Mega-Cap Fast Track Process
19:11 Why Lock Up Release for SpaceX is More Important than Inclusion?
28:24 Sector and Style Decisions
32:56 Why May 29 Represents Largest MSCI Rebalance in History?
38:47 Domestic Benchmarks, Redomicile and Teck debate in Canada
48:24 The Busy Index Calendar – Is the market able to handle this activity?
56:27 Advice to Fundamental Investors on Trading Around Index Events
For relevant disclosures, visit: tdsecurities.com/ca/en/legal#PodcastDisclosure. To learn more about TD Securities, visit us at tdsecurities.com or follow us on LinkedIn @tdsecurities.
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