BlueStar Indexes, an index provider with a strong focus on Israel's capital markets and global thematic ideas, has been acquired by MV Index Solutions GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Van Eck Associates Corp., the companies announced today. 

New York City-based BlueStar has created 30 indexes, with all but one devoted to equities. Many of its indexes are licensed by overseas asset managers, and four of them underlie U.S.-listed exchange-traded funds. That includes two Israel-centric products: the $112 million BlueStar Israel Technology ETF (ITEQ), the largest U.S. ETF devoted to Israeli stocks, and the $62 million VanEck Vectors Israel ETF (ISRA).

Elsewhere, 20 of BlueStar’s indexes involve global thematic ideas ranging from green tech and solar energy to blockchain and autonomous driving. The two U.S. funds within this realm that employ BlusStar indexes are the $417 million Defiance Next Gen Connectivity ETF (FIVG), which is a play on 5G technology, and the Defiance Quantum ETF (QTUM), a $32.7 million fund focused on companies involved in the development of quantum computing and machine learning technology.

MV Index Solutions is a German company based in Frankfurt with more than 90 indexes under its belt. With BlueStar on board, the expanded company will have more than $18 billion in licensed product assets on four continents, according to a press release.

Steven Schoenfeld, founder and chief investment officer at Blue Star Indexes, will be CEO of the combined entity, and all of BlueStar’s staff has joined MV Index Solutions.

“Part of the logic of the transaction is there’s a compatibility between our product set in that MV Index Solutions is heavily resourced in analysis and resources on the operations side, and we’ve been developing content to support our licensees on the front end,” Schoenfeld said in an interview.

He noted that while VanEck funds will continue to be a key client for MV Index Solutions (after all, it’s owned by Van Eck), one of the mandates of the combined entity is to grow its revenue across other issuers in the funds industry.

Terms of the deal weren't announced.