In what may be the first of its kind, two closed-end funds managed by First Trust Advisors are poised to become exchange-traded funds, The Wall Street Journal reports. Pending approval by shareholders – the board of First Trust Value Line Dividend Trust and First Trust Value Line & Ibbotson Equity Allocation Fund have given their OK – the conversion is likely to occur by the end of January. According to the Journal, the move comes as First Trust seeks a way to deal with the funds’ trading at deep discounts to their net asset value. “It’s a very creative attempt to deal with the discount,” Philip Goldstein of hedge fund manager Bulldog Investors told the paper. “I’m hopeful that it will work.” There may be more of these conversions on the way, and ETF specialist PowerShares Capital Management is preparing for it. Anticipating such moves last year, PowerShares has developed a program that would convert closed-end funds to ETFs automatically, patent pending.