A unique exchange-traded fund (ETF), which excludes companies led by Elon Musk from the investment t..

사진 확대

A unique exchange-traded fund (ETF), which excludes companies led by Elon Musk from the investment target, is pushing to launch in the U.S. Amid controversy over Musk’s political moves and corporate governance, it is drawing attention in that it is a product aimed at investors who want to avoid “Musk risk” while maintaining the advantages of index investment.

According to Market Watch and others on the 9th (local time), US ETF management company Subversive ETFs submitted two types of listing registration documents for Ex-Elon ETFs to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The new products are QQNE, excluding Musk-related companies from the Nasdaq 100 index, and SPNE, excluding Musk-related companies from the S&P 500 index.

There have been leverage ETFs that short-sell Tesla or ETFs that exclude Tesla based on ESG standards, but this is actually the first product to fundamentally exclude companies related to Elon Musk, a particular businessman, from investment.

As of now, Tesla and SpaceX are excluded. QQNE follows the index by excluding both SpaceX and Tesla, which have recently been incorporated into the Nasdaq 100, and SPNE has the effect of excluding Tesla, an S&P 500 component. If Musk-led companies such as xAI, Neuralink, and The Boring Company go public in the future, they may be added to the list at the judgment of the management company.

The management company noted that demand for themed ETFs, which reflect investors’ values, has been growing recently. Some investors recognize Musk’s political activities, social media X operations, conflicts with the government, and decision-making structures focused on CEO individuals as corporate risks, and there is a demand that they do not want to invest in Musk companies while holding index ETFs.

There are mixed reviews in the market. Dave Nardick of ETF.COM predicted that actual investment demand will be limited, saying, “It is a product that is likely to be only a topic.” On the other hand, asset manager Elibest predicted that it will be able to secure a certain level of marketability as the investment culture that considers ESG, corporate governance, and political values spreads. However, it is pointed out as a limitation that if Tesla and SpaceX record higher returns compared to the market, investors may miss that much excess return.

Nate Gerachi, president of Novadius Asset Management, said, “Musk is a person who is evaluated by both extremes, so it makes sense for ETF issuers to try to use it to make money,” but pointed out, “It is splitting the market too small.”

Subversive ETF, which introduced this product, is a management company that has made its name known as a unique idea product on Wall Street. It is evaluated as pioneering a niche ETF market that combines political and social issues with investment strategies. In fact, it drew attention by releasing NANC ETFs, which are managed based on stock trading details of U.S. Democratic lawmakers, and KRUZ ETFs, which contain investment stocks of Republican lawmakers. The net assets (AUM) of the flagship NANC ETF are about $280 million as of recently, mainly holding Nvidia, Alphabet Class C, Microsoft, and Amazon. The recent one-year yield is about 20%.

Earlier, an ETF aimed at Cathie Wood Ark Investment CEO, nicknamed “Money Tree Sister” in Korea, came out in 2021. The exact name is Tradr 1X Short Innovation Daily ETF (the name was AXS Short Innovation Daily ETF at launch), a product designed to follow the daily rate of return of ARKKK, Ark Invest’s ETF, at -1 times (inverse). The ETF, released by Tuttle Capital Management in the U.S., is also the first inverse ETF in the U.S. with other ETFs as underlying assets. In fact, it is designed to have the effect of short selling ARKK itself, an active ETF. At the time, Morningstar called it an “unprecedented product.” Unlike the topic of conversation, the recent one-year return is –22.09%, which is low in performance.