Compared to hedge funds, exchange-traded funds look like a dollar store bargain. Some hedge fund companies, however, are not letting go of the fees, regardless of the platform.

U.K. fund manager Marshall Wace will soon offer retail investors the opportunity to latch onto popular hedge fund strategies via a new ETF. The new fund, which will be named Marshall Wace TOPS Global Alpha ETF, will trade in the US and hold the same positions as Wace’s six existing hedge funds, the Motley Fool reports.

The fund will be actively-managed (Wace’s funds have a turnover as high as 18 times deposits) and will use a proprietary system to evaluate analysts’ upgrades and downgrades. The fund will not lose its hedge fund properties, having decided to maintain a .25% management expense, as well as 1.5% annual charges and a 20% performance fee. The fund may be worth its high price, having posted average annual returns of 10.9%.

Investors hoping to string a portfolio safety net have injected a record amount of cash into ETFS Securities’ gold funds. The British fund grew by 7% in just one day, as investors looked to protect their portfolios from inflation.

Stateside, assets in US based Gold Shares (GLD: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News) rose in the second quarter, mostly due to increasing gold prices. Investors who were gold bulls during the credit crunch recently found Wall Street’s near vertical returns promising, opting to sell safe assets and buy into riskier ventures. However, risk aversion may be again permeating trading strategies, putting gold ETFs in an excellent rebound position.

The growth in physical assets also appears to be in response to CTFC crackdowns on ETFs backed by futures, according to TheStreet. Because physical ETFs hold the commodity itself, and not a derivative, they are exempt from any restrictions on futures trading, while providing inflation protection that investors crave.

Currency ETFs are not the most popular exchange-traded funds due to their less than volatile temperament. However, recent volatility in the US dollar is motivating investors into buying non-American denominated ETF currency funds.

The US dollar now treads on an 11-month low after breaking through many important and longstanding support and resistance lines, according to Barron’s. The dip in the dollar does not see relief on the horizon, as inflationary procedures by the Fed and Congress have sent investors fleeing.

One of the biggest movements has come from the CurrencyShares British Pound ETF (FXB: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News), which rocketed from its June highs to reach new territory to $169 per share. Analysts expect the devaluation in the US dollar will continue, based upon the $350 billion economic stimulus package to be spent in 2010 alone. The sheer volume of so many dollars being used all in one year places a strong inflationary strain on the currency as more funds must be borrowed, ultimately devaluing the currency.

ETF Securities has wasted no time in bringing its new Silver ETF to market. Despite stiff competition from iShares, ETF Securities is preparing to launch its new ETF on July 24.

The exchange-traded fund, which will be named ETF Securities Silver Trust (SIVR: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News), will trade on the NYSE Arca. The company has already sold 100,000 shares to an initial purchaser, helping to jumpstart the availability of the shares at launch, according to Reuters.

Though ETF Securities owns the top commodity funds in London, instant success in the United States seems implausible. Of the three largest silver trusts in the world, iShares’ funds control 80% of the interest, concentrating nearly all market influence into just one firm. While ETF Securities’ Silver Trust will trade at a slightly lower annual fee, the fund may run into complications drawing interest from the $3 billion iShares Silver Trust (SLV: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News), which maintains a .01 bid/ask spread.

ETF Securities, one of the largest exchange-traded fund sponsors in Europe, is planning to take the US markets by storm. After filing to create a variety of commodity ETFs to trade on US exchanges, the firm has hired an ETF marketing firm for an aggressive American campaign.

William Rhind, a Barclays Global alumnus, will lead ETF Securities’ charge into the US marketplace, according to the press release. The firm is already planning a gold and silver ETF, as well as a platinum fund, which would be a first on the New York Stock Exchange. However, the firm faces stiff competition from rivals already embedded inside the industry, including US Gold Shares (GLD: Quote, Profile, Advanced Chart, News).

ETF Securities was the first company to launch an exchange-traded commodity fund, creating the first ETC platform in 2006.