MFS Investments on Thursday announced the launch of three actively managed large-cap exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in partnership with State Street Global Advisors.

Under the terms of the partnership, MFS will be responsible for handling the investment process of the funds while the responsibility of marketing and distribution will be on State Street Global Advisors.

MFS is not the first mutual fund (MF) firm that has teamed up with an existing ETF firm to enter the ETF field. In October last year, Fidelity Investments launched its first ETF in partnership with BlackRock Inc's iShares.

Meanwhile, India's insurance regulator IRDA has confirmed that it would allow insurance firms to make investments in ETFs. The regulator has already released draft guidelines for such investments.

Explaining the rationale for allowing insurance firms to invest in ETFs, the regulator said in a statement, "The authority is in receipt of representations to allow insurance companies to invest in equity exchange traded funds."

The move has a great significance considering government's plans to transfer shares in public sector companies to ETFs to achieve its massive disinvestment target. One of the regulator's draft guidelines states that insurance firms will be allowed to invest in only those equity ETFs that don't own more than 15 per cent of the fund in a single firm.