SPDR Blackstone Senior Loan ETF

SPDR Blackstone Senior Loan ETF (SRLN) is an actively managed fund, sub-advised by Blackstone, that holds senior secured floating-rate loans to mostly below-investment-grade companies. Because the interest rates on its loans reset every few months, its price reacts little to rate moves. Its trailing yield was 7.35%, paid monthly, as of October 27, 2026. The trade-offs are credit risk and a 0.70% expense ratio, compared with an average of 0.11% for similar funds.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, SRLN returned +3.7%, 1st of 8 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was +4.7%.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-5.3%); its best was 2023 (+11.6%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 7.9% (Jan 14, 2022 to Sep 30, 2022), recovered by Jul 12, 2023.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 794 securities; the ten largest made up 17.06% of assets, and 3.04% sat in cash and money-market holdings.

The bonds mature in 5.2 years on average (weighted by size), with an average coupon of 6.84%.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors added a net $493.9M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +1.73%, +0.57%, -0.31%.

SRLN is actively managed, not an index fund. Its goal is current income while preserving capital, and it tries to beat the Morningstar LSTA US Leveraged Loan Index. At least 80% of net assets go into first-lien senior secured floating-rate loans. If a borrower goes bankrupt, these loans are first in line to be repaid from its pledged assets, though taxes and some other claims can come first. Each loan pays a set premium over a base lending rate, and that rate resets from time to time. The fund aims to keep the average time to the next reset under 90 days. So when rates change, its income adjusts quickly, but its price barely moves.

The sub-adviser, Blackstone Liquid Credit Strategies, picks each loan using its own credit research. It considers credit ratings but doesn't let them decide, and most holdings are below investment grade. It favors established companies that generate cash, hold strong market positions, have proven management and are often backed by private equity firms. Each loan must have at least $250 million outstanding. Some loans are "covenant-lite," meaning lenders get fewer protections. The fund trades often: portfolio turnover was 153%.

As of June 30, 2026, the fund held 797 positions: 84.85% loans, 8.3% bonds and 3.91% CLOs (securities backed by pools of loans). The largest holdings were Hologic (2.17%) and Gainwell (2.16%). Loans don't trade on an exchange, so they can be slow to sell and hard to price.

• SRLN charges 0.7% a year, versus an average of 0.11% for the similar funds below (8th of 8, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $72 in the first year and $871 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

SRLN pays monthly income from floating-rate corporate loans, and it carries credit risk rather than offering stability in a crisis.

SRLN could supply monthly income. Its trailing 12-month yield was 7.35% ($2.94 a share) as of October 27, 2026. Its price has been steadier than stocks, but it is no safe haven. It launched in 2013, so it has no record from 2008. Its worst quarter was an 11.57% loss in early 2020, during the COVID crash. In 2022 it fell 7.9% between January 14 and September 30, then took about 9.4 months to recover, finally doing so on July 12, 2023. Its worst calendar year was 2022, down 4.55%. Anyone forced to sell during a stretch like that would lock in losses, and loan defaults can cut income. Because the rates float, payouts tend to shrink when interest rates fall. The fund costs 0.70% a year. Under the SEC's standard example, that's $72 in the first year on $10,000. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by bond funds with the closest average maturity and issuer mix (N-PORT).