ETNs offer distinct characteristics to investors, such as:
Benchmarking
ETNs track, exactly, the performance of their underlying market benchmark
Liquidity
ETNs are open-ended securities, and therefore are not limited to on-exchange volumes
Accessibility
ETNs are traded and settled on a stock exchange, the same as any equity, and can be purchased and held in ordinary brokerage or custodial accounts
Ease of Ownership
ETNs do not involve any of the difficulties with buying and then managing a futures position (eg. worrying about margin calls, contracts expiring and rolling positions) or in buying and storing physical assets.
Transparency
ETN pricing is based on a transparent formula with the pricing updated daily by the issuer ETNs are priced using published settlement prices