CAGE vs CASV: complete portfolio versus pure small-cap value tilt

Short answer: CAGE.TO is the Avantis CIBC all-equity all-in-one ETF, designed to be a complete global portfolio in one ticker. CASV.TO is the Avantis CIBC Global Small Cap Value ETF, a single-factor satellite holding, not a complete portfolio. They’re not really competing products. CAGE could be your whole equity allocation; CASV is a slice you’d add on top of (or instead of part of) a core, if you have specific conviction in small-cap value as a factor.

If you’re seeing “CAGE vs CASV” in your search results and trying to decide which one to buy, the framing itself is doing some work. These two funds are part of the same Avantis CIBC lineup, and the natural reflex is to compare them head to head. But they aren’t built for the same job, and treating them as alternatives leads to the wrong decision.

This is not financial advice. I’m sharing what I’ve learned from my own research, and your situation might be different from mine. Fund details, MERs, and structures change. Always verify on the fund’s own page before making decisions.

What each fund is

CAGE.TO is the Avantis CIBC All-Equity Asset Allocation ETF. It listed on the TSX on March 18, 2026, and holds a global equity portfolio across U.S., international developed, emerging, and Canadian stocks. It tilts the portfolio toward value, smaller companies, and profitable companies, but the core structure is “broad global equity with a tilt.” 100% equities, one ticker, designed to be the complete equity side of a portfolio.

CASV.TO is the Avantis CIBC Global Small Cap Value ETF. It listed on the TSX on March 13, 2026, and holds only small-cap value stocks across global markets. It’s not a diversified portfolio in the same sense; it’s a concentrated bet on a specific factor combination. Anyone holding only CASV would have no exposure to large-cap stocks, growth stocks, or any of the broader market.

Same lineup, same Avantis methodology underneath, completely different role in a portfolio.

If you’re still getting oriented on the all-equity side, the CAGE ETF guide covers what CAGE.TO holds, its management fee, and how the factor strategy works in full.

CAGE vs CASV side-by-side

CAGE vs CASV side by side

Attribute	CAGE.TO	CASV.TO
Full name	Avantis CIBC All-Equity Asset Allocation ETF	Avantis CIBC Global Small Cap Value ETF
Strategy	Global all-equity with factor tilts	Small-cap value, globally diversified within the factor
Coverage	U.S., international developed, emerging, Canada (full market cap range)	Small-caps only, value-screened
Role in portfolio	Core (complete equity allocation in one ticker)	Satellite (single-factor tilt, on top of a core)
Listed	March 18, 2026	March 13, 2026
Management fee	0.28%	0.39%
MER	Not yet published (first-year rule)	Not yet published (first-year rule)

The fee gap matters. CASV’s 0.39% management fee is meaningfully above CAGE’s 0.28%. Small-cap value strategies are more expensive to run because trading the underlying small-caps is costlier and the screens are more involved. Inside the broader Canadian ETF landscape, neither fee is unreasonable for what the fund does, but they’re priced differently because they do different things.

When CASV is the wrong question

If you’re choosing between CAGE and CASV for your whole portfolio, CAGE wins by default. CASV alone leaves you with no large-cap exposure, no growth exposure, and no diversification across the rest of the market. That’s not a portfolio; that’s a concentrated factor bet sized at 100%. That’s almost never the right call, even for investors who genuinely believe in small-cap value.

The CAGE-vs-CASV comparison only becomes interesting if you’re asking a different question: “I have a core (XEQT, VEQT, or CAGE), and I’m thinking about adding a satellite tilt. Should that satellite be CASV?”

That’s the real question, and it has different inputs.

When CASV makes sense as a satellite

CASV fits a portfolio if three things are true at the same time:

1. You already have a diversified core. The all-equity allocation is already covered by something like XEQT, VEQT, or CAGE. CASV is on top.
2. You have a strong, articulated view that small-cap value will outperform over a multi-decade horizon. Not “I read a Reddit post.” Conviction you could explain to someone who pushes back, ideally rooted in the academic literature (Fama-French, Eugene Fama, Robert Novy-Marx).
3. You can hold through long stretches of underperformance without flinching. Small-cap value has historically outperformed broad markets over 30-year windows, but it has underperformed for 10-year stretches multiple times. The current period is one of those. If watching CASV trail your core for five or ten years would push you to sell, you shouldn’t start.

If all three are true, a sleeve of 5% to 15% in CASV is the typical sizing for a satellite factor tilt. Larger than that and the position starts to dominate your portfolio behavior in ways that defeat the purpose of having a diversified core.

If any of those three aren’t true, CASV is a tax-friction-and-fee drag on a portfolio that didn’t need it.

CAGE already has a value tilt

This is the part that confuses people most. CAGE itself already tilts toward value, smaller companies, and profitability. That’s the whole Avantis methodology. So someone holding CAGE already has factor exposure baked into their core.

Adding CASV on top of CAGE doubles down on the small-cap and value tilts. That’s a deliberate choice, not a mistake, but it’s worth being explicit about. The combined CAGE + CASV portfolio is more aggressive on factor exposure than CAGE alone.

If you want broad equity with a moderate tilt, CAGE alone delivers that. If you want broad equity with a deliberate, larger small-cap value tilt, CAGE + CASV does that. The “right” amount depends on conviction.

Tax and account considerations

Both CAGE and CASV are Canadian-listed in Canadian dollars and are qualified investments for any standard Canadian registered account: TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, RESP, RDSP, RRIF, and LIRA, as well as in non-registered accounts.

Practically, factor-tilted ETFs like CASV often have higher portfolio turnover than broad index funds, which can generate more capital gains distributions in a non-registered account. The first full tax year of CASV will reveal the actual distribution pattern. If you’re putting CASV in a non-registered account, that’s worth watching once the T3 slips arrive in 2027.

The full lineup, including the other six Avantis CIBC funds and how each fits a portfolio, is covered in the Avantis CIBC ETFs guide.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between CAGE and CASV?

CAGE is the Avantis CIBC all-equity ETF, designed to be a complete global equity portfolio in one ticker. CASV is the Avantis CIBC Global Small Cap Value ETF, a single-factor satellite holding focused only on small-cap value stocks. CAGE is built to be a core holding; CASV is built to be a satellite tilt added on top of a core.

Should I hold CAGE or CASV?

If you only hold one Avantis CIBC fund, CAGE makes more sense. It gives you broad global equity exposure with the Avantis factor tilts already baked in. CASV alone would leave you with no large-cap or growth exposure, which is rarely the right portfolio for a retail investor. CASV makes sense as a 5% to 15% satellite addition on top of a diversified core, if you have specific conviction in small-cap value.

What does CASV.TO hold?

CASV holds small-cap value stocks across global markets, screened for the Avantis factor methodology (value, profitability, smaller companies). The full holdings list and country weights have not been published yet because the fund is in its first year of inception. The CASV ETF guide breaks down the fund, its fee, and how the small-cap value strategy works in full.

What’s the MER of CASV?

CASV’s management fee is 0.39%. The full MER, which includes operating expenses on top of the management fee, has not been published yet because Canadian regulators don’t require it in a fund’s first year. Once disclosed, expect it to land a few basis points above 0.39%.

Does CAGE include small-cap value exposure?

Yes, partially. CAGE applies value, size, and profitability tilts across its full global portfolio, which means it overweights smaller and value-tilted companies relative to a cap-weighted index. So a CAGE holder already has some small-cap value exposure. Adding CASV on top is a deliberate decision to amplify that exposure further, not to introduce it for the first time.

Can I hold CASV in a TFSA or RRSP?

Yes. CASV trades on the TSX in Canadian dollars and is a qualified investment for any standard Canadian registered account: TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, RESP, RDSP, RRIF, and LIRA, as well as in non-registered accounts.

Is CASV a good investment?

It depends on the role you’re asking it to play. As a complete portfolio, no, because it lacks large-cap and growth exposure. As a 5% to 15% satellite tilt added to a diversified core, it’s a reasonable expression of the small-cap value factor for investors with strong conviction in that factor and the patience to hold through long underperformance stretches. The honest answer is “depends on the portfolio it’s joining.”

Bottom line

CAGE versus CASV isn’t really the comparison most investors should be making. They serve different roles in a portfolio. CAGE wants to be the equity side of your portfolio, full stop. CASV wants to be a thoughtful satellite addition for someone with specific conviction in small-cap value as a factor.

If you’re choosing your one ETF, CAGE is the one out of the two that’s actually built for that job. If you already have a core and you’re considering adding factor satellites, CASV is one option, but it’s also the kind of decision worth being deliberate about. Small-cap value can underperform for a long time, and the satellite role only works if you can hold through the underperformance without selling.

Most retail investors would be served fine by just holding CAGE, or even just XEQT, and skipping the satellite question entirely. That’s the boring answer. It’s also usually the correct one.