Trillions (Bloomberg)

Collectively, exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, are doubling assets every couple of years. In order to achieve a feat like that in finance you need some attractive qualities. The ETF happens to have many. You can almost think of these as a disruptive technology, akin to the MP3 or Uber. They’re at once fast, good, and cheap—and few things combine all three of those ingredients for consumers. 

On the first episode of Bloomberg's new podcast, Trillions, we break down in plain English what exactly makes ETFs so powerful and popular, including their low-cost, diversification, liquidity, convenience, and transparency. Together, these elements are why ETFs are democratizing investing. And they’re not done transforming the investment industry yet, either. In fact, two evolutionary lines are already forming. In one, fees are plummeting toward zero; in the other, every “active” strategy and theme you can think of is getting repackaged as an ETF. 

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has all but made clear it will probably approve Bitcoin exchange-traded funds that hold Bitcoin futures, versus ones that hold the cryptocurrency itself. This has sparked a wave of new filings which, if approved, could hit the market by November. But how do they work, and how will investors respond to them?

On this week's Trillions, we get insight into this from two people who currently offer Bitcoin futures funds, Simeon Hyman of ProShares, who runs a Bitcoin futures mutual fund, and Steve Hawkins of Horizons, who runs a Bitcoin futures ETF in Canada. They discuss how the futures market works, how performance differs from Bitcoin, roll costs and what a wave of these hitting the market just might look like. 

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If ETFs had a Mount Rushmore, QQQ (aka 'The Qs') would definitely be on it. This $72 billion legend of an ETF just turned 20 years old and is now the second most traded security in the world. But how much do investors really know about it? 

On this week’s Trillions Carolina Wilson of Bloomberg News sets out to the Midwest with microphone in hand to talk to those who built the original index and the ETF as well as tracked its changes over the years. Her journey lead to some interesting discoveries as well as a trip to the Chicago zoo, where she actually got a lion to roar. 

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A new approach to investing called direct or custom indexing effectively lets investors own stocks but with some special enhancements, such as capturing tax alpha. In other words, you get some of an ETF's charm without the ETF. For investors interested in potentially taking a portfolio to the next level, this is a new tool for the toolbox.  

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Patrick O'Shaughnessy, CEO of O'Shaughnessy Asset Management and host of the podcast Invest Like the Best, about the pros and cons of custom indexing, how it differs from direct indexing and ETFs, and also how the tax alpha is achieved. They also discuss O'Shaughnessy's career, favorite philosophers, and, well, podcasting. 

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What do copper miners, the metaverse and carbon credits all have in common? Absolutely nothing, except they are all tracked by ETFs that made Bloomberg Intelligence's 22 ETFs to Watch in '22 annual report. The report, which is published each December, features ETFs that the ETF research team is thinking about, obsessed with or taps into a big trend or theme. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel are joined by all of the analysts who contributed to the list, including Athanasios Psarafagis, James Seyffart, and Rebecca Sin. They debate and discuss the full list: BITO, VOTE, IGHG, GBTC, FRDM, CTRU, COPX, BITS, FOVL, SARK, BKLC, SPSB, C02, ARKK, META, DRIV, KWEB, TLT, VTI, USMV, MVPS and AVDV.

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On this new show from Bloomberg, hosts Mike Regan and Sarah Ponczek speak with expert guests each week about the main themes influencing global markets. They explore everything from stocks to bonds to currencies and commodities, and how each asset class affects trading in the others. Whether you’re a financial professional or just a curious retirement saver, What Goes Up keeps you apprised of the latest buzz on Wall Street and what the wildest movements in markets will mean for your investments.

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Gold or Bitcoin? The answer to that question—as always—depends on whom you ask. Yet the response will regularly be a passionate one. The exchange-traded fund has played an enormous role in making both assets more accessible, part of the reason 2024 was such a banner year. With the debut of spot Bitcoin ETFs and Donald Trump’s election (given his embrace cryptocurrency during the campaign), we now look to what the new year means for both.

On this episode of Trillions, recorded at Bloomberg’s “ETFs in Depth” event on Dec. 12 in New York, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber discuss the two sectors with Simeon Hyman of ProShares, David Lavalle of Grayscale and George Million-Stanley of State Street Global Advisors. The group explores gold and Bitcoin as a store of value, how each asset can benefit investors and even how the two can coexist in a single portfolio. They also discuss what to make of Trump’s recent enthusiasm for crypto and how their companies are preparing for the incoming administration.

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Municipal bonds are the foundation of how American cities and states operate. And a big reason investors love “munis” is their tax-free status. But if you think that makes muni exchange-traded funds sound boring, think again.

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Eric Kazatsky, head of municipal strategy at Bloomberg Intelligence and co-host of the podcast Masters of the Muniverse. They discuss the storied history of munis, how they figure into portfolios—and how that favored tax-free status could be at risk in President Donald Trump’s second term.

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The quest for a bitcoin ETF has lasted more than eight years. Countless filings have ended in rejection. Then, finally, it happened—the SEC allowed a bitcoin ETF to come to market, albeit one that tracks futures as opposed to holding bitcoin. The unlikely winner of this race? ProShares, whose ETF $BITO broke all kinds of records for a new launch. Valkyrie's version, $BTF, was also approved. 

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with ETF lawyer Jeremy Senderowicz of Vedder Price, Katie Greifeld of Bloomberg News, and James Seyffart of Bloomberg Intelligence about these developments. Their discussion includes how Greifeld's reporting moved the price of bitcoin, why the SEC allowed futures-backed products, who benefits from these investments, and what comes next.

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While exchange-traded funds have become increasingly popular and people are more familiar with them, there are still aspects of ETFs that—for some—remain shrouded in mystery. So we recently asked our followers on social media to send us any ETF questions they may have or topics they were curious about. We received a ton of responses. 

On this episode of Trillions, Joel Weber and Eric Balchunas answer about 20 of these questions—ranging from whether ETFs will be in 401(k) plans someday to how overnight trading works to our thoughts on some of the new iterations of ETFs, like buffers, return stacking and crypto. 

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Nvidia's ascent into one of the world's biggest companies was as fast as it was dramatic. The company's startling rise has sparked new ETFs to launch and propelled others to record heights. Nvidia's dominance is also changing indexes and weightings, which can have a dramatic impact on investors—especially when a rebalance gets a little wild.

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Athanasios Psarofagis of Bloomberg Intelligence and Emily Graffeo of Bloomberg News about the myriad ways Nvidia is impacting the ETF universe. They also reveal which ETFs have outperformed without a boost from Nvidia.

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What questions should you ask about an ETF before you make an investment? What about when two or three ETFs seem practically the same? In this episode, Todd Rosenbluth, a mutual fund and ETF analyst with CFRA, joins the podcast to discuss his due diligence checklist. This is a topic that can get weedy in a hurry; if you're new to ETFs, just think of it like you're looking under the hood of a car. Start by evaluating the holdings, weightings, and costs, and then you can start wading into next-level stuff like liquidity and volatility. By the end of this episode, you'll learn how expert analysts view any ETF.

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Much like kids, ETFs can grow up so fast. And while you can expect the Vanguards and BlackRocks to keep hoovering up assets, there are many lesser-known products that have gained respectable followings. Sometimes it's quite shocking to see just how big they've gotten since the last time you checked on them. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel are joined by Todd Rosenbluth, Director of Mutual & Exchange Traded Fund Research at CFA, Claire Ballentine, reporter for Bloomberg News and Athanasios Psarofagis, analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. They discuss and debate eight ETFs that got surprisingly large, including: $XSOE, $IQLT, $IVOL, $SOXL, $BUZZ, $UFO, $TMFC and $BUG. 

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A new batch of ETFs seeks to appeal to right-leaning investors who want an alternative to "woke" Corporate America and ESG activism. While political-themed ETFs aren't a new idea, they've never really managed to attract meaningful assets. With Americans more polarized than ever before, could this be the moment that these ETFs actually find an audience?

Eric and Joel speak with Bloomberg Businessweek national correspondent Joshua Green about his magazine story on 2ndVote Advisers, which will soon introduce a new fund to complement their existing offerings ($EGIS and $LYFE). They also discuss the infighting with the $MAGA ETF, the practical considerations of putting these funds into a portfolio, and why this version of conservative investing is so challenged. 

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Inflation. Unemployment. Consumer demand. All important economic data—but more important is how the Federal Reserve interprets it all and reacts. The central bank wields an especially powerful influence over markets, so understanding how its members think, what they are doing and why is important for any engaged investor.

We speak with Ira Jersey, Bloomberg’s Chief US Interest Rate Strategist, about how to read the latest inflation data through the Fed’s eyes. We also talk about how exactly the Fed impacts the real economy as well as what’s on its balance sheet. Finally, Jersey gives his opinion on different types of bond exchange-traded funds, such as TIPS, junk bonds and single-bond ETFs. 

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The issuer of an exchange-traded fund has one main goal, and that’s to get assets—but being recognized is nice, too. Just like the Oscars, the ETF industry has its own awards show, held by ETF.com every April in New York City. Categories include ETF of the Year, Issuer of the Year, Best New Fixed Income ETF and even a Lifetime Achievement Award. Now that the tenth annual ETF awards ceremony is in the history books, we can tell you that—just like the Academy Awards—there were some notable winners as well as a few surprises. 

Om this episode, Joel and Eric look through a number of winners with ETF.com's editor-in-chief Kristin Myers and finance reporter Lucy Brewster. 

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For the first time in its 49-year history, Vanguard has chosen a chief executive from outside the company. His name is Salim Ramji, who previously served as head of BlackRock’s global exchange-traded fund business. The move comes as Vanguard continues to lead the industry in flows, but the giant has other challenges—such as customer service.

How much should we expect Ramji to change, or leave the the same, in the House that Bogle Built?

On this episode of Trillions, Joel Weber and Eric Balchunas are joined by reporter Silla Brush to answer all of these questions and look at the broader topics surrounding the constantly changing landscape of asset management. 

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Next week, we’re going long with Barry Ritholtz—a money manager, Bloomberg Opinion columnist, and fellow podcast host. Get ready: We literally couldn't stop talking.

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When you are an ETF issuer, you typically have some products doing well — and other ones doing less well. No better example of that than VanEck Vectors, an eclectic brand of ETFs that reflect the many phases of this year's wild ride. On this episode Trillions, Joel and Eric chat with the firm's CEO, Jan Van Eck, about the Fed's ETF plans, fallen-angel bonds, high-yield munis, video games, and the juxtaposition of offering both green and coal ETFs.

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You know ETFs have gone mainstream when there are multiple TV shows about them, including Bloomberg’s own ETF IQ. Nearing its 100th episode, the show is co-hosted by veteran Bloomberg TV anchor Scarlet Fu and Eric. On this episode of Trillions, Scarlet and Eric take Joel behind-the-scenes of the fast-paced show, pick some of their favorite moments with noteworthy guests, and also deconstruct a few lessons from the ever-evolving ETF industry.

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This is not your grandfather’s exchange-traded fund industry. What started as boring, predictable and passive has morphed into strategies and packaged trades being packed into new ETFs. These include leverage, options overlays and private assets. Given all of this upheaval, some from the old school are worried investors aren’t receiving the exposure and protection from issuers they think they are.

On this episode of Trillions, Joel Weber and Eric Balchunas talk to ETF veteran and author Dave Nadig about his buzzworthy blog post in which he borrows language from the hacker world, describing ETFs as “black hat” versus “white hat.” To figure out what these developments mean for the industry, they are joined by cross-asset reporter Vildana Hajric.

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Just as Steve Jobs didn't invent the computer, Jack Bogle didn't invent the index fund. The first index fund was actually launched back in 1971, about five years before Bogle and Vanguard brought it to the masses. 

On this week's Trillions, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the index fund with a conversation with John "Mac" McQuown, who worked with the head of Wells Fargo and a dozen academics (many of whom have Nobel prizes now) to develop the first, albeit short-lived index fund. We discuss the roots of the idea, the trials and tribulations of putting it into practice as well as his relationship with Bogle. 

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Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest recently purchased European exchange-traded fund issuer Rize. The move shows yet another US-based issuer bringing their talents to Europe, a market that while only a fraction the size of the US is growing quickly. 

On this episode of Trillions we talk to Hector McNeil, Co-Chief Executive Officer of HANetf and a veteran of the European ETF market. We discuss how Europe remains behind the US in some ways, but ahead in others. We also analyze how portfolios are changing and what McNeil advises issuers to think about when launching new funds. 

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The US Global Jets ETF (JETS) has seen over half a billion dollars worth of inflows over 50 straight days - unheard numbers for a thematic ETF - despite the fund's 60% year-to-date decline and selling from Warren Buffett. But the depressed airline industry is attracting retail value investors in droves who see huge upside potential as well as looking for a proxy for the re-opening and rebound of the global economy. 

On this episode of Trillions we interview the founder of JETS, Frank Holmes, about his surprising success after five years of almost no interest in the fund. He also gives his outlook on the airline industry as well as the more-than-meets-the-eye design of the index it tracks. 

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Most passive investors take for granted that their fund “tracks an index.” Well, that’s actually something of a feat because there’s so much more going on than meets the eye. And it’s all to effectively end up tied with the index. This job isn't automated, either. Rather, a team of people must work together, playing defense against hedge funds and corporate actions and also offense through securities lending and trading desk acumen. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel — along with Annie Massa, a reporter with Bloomberg News — interview Vanguard’s Gerry O'Reilly. A portfolio manager overseeing many of Vanguard's biggest funds, including the $940 billion Vanguard Total Stock Market Fund, O’Reilly helped rebate more than $200 million to investors through this unsung art of passive portfolio management. 

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One of the more colorful aspects of the exchange-traded industry are the tickers. The best are stuff of legend; others are totally forgettable. But who's in charge of these three- and four-letter identifiers? How are they reserved? Do you own them or rent them? Can you sell them? 

Joining Eric and Joel on this episode are a squad of experts assembled to nail down the facts once and for all: Mike Venuto of Toroso, Phil Bak of Signal Advisors, and Laura Morrison of CBOE. Also joining is Claire Ballentine, ETF reporter with Bloomberg News. Eric, Joel, and Claire also see if a few of their own ticker ideas are available. Can Joel's Loony Tunes-inspired pipe dream possibly come true? Listen to find out. 

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Bloomberg's Travel Genius podcast is back! After clocking another hundred-thousand miles in the sky, hosts Nikki Ekstein and Mark Ellwood have a whole new series of flight hacking, restaurant sleuthing, and hotel booking tips to inspire your own getaways—along with a who's who roster of itinerant pros ready to spill their own travel secrets. From a special episode on Disney to a master class on packing, we'll go high, low, east, west, and everywhere in between. The new season starts Nov. 6.

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In the aftermath of President Donald Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day,” stock markets around the world plunged. Yet just 13 hours after Trump’s tariffs took effect, the president paused them for 90 days — for countries not named China, that is.

Markets soared in response to Trump’s backpedaling. The S&P 500 Index climbed almost 10% while the Nasdaq Composite Index jumped by the most since 2001. The Trump put, or the belief that the president uses the stock market as his scoreboard, appears to be alive and well after all.

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber discuss what just happened, how ETFs fared and where cracks appeared. They also assess flows, volume and what to watch next.

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This past year has reminded everyone why they’re called “emerging” markets. But it’s gone further this time, with investors questioning whether they even want to own anything in countries ruled by authoritarian governments, such as those in Russia and China. The conversation, in other words, has evolved. 

On this week’s episode of Trillions, we recorded live from the Exchange conference in Miami with Perth Tolle, founder of Life + Liberty Indexes, Jeremy Schwartz, chief information officer of WisdomTree and Bloomberg reporter Katie Greifeld. Tolle and Schwartz have a friendly debate about whether China and Russia deserve a spot in a portfolio. We also discuss currency-hedged exchange-traded funds and life as a small ETF issuer.

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The death of mutual funds has been greatly exaggerated. With $24 trillion in assets, they outmatch exchange-traded funds two to one. And there’s good reason to keep tabs on them as well—especially because of what they reveal about active management. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel speak with new Bloomberg Intelligence mutual fund analyst David Cohne. He’s already made some fascinating discoveries deep inside the world of mutual funds—including who beat QQQ, one fund's unusual top holding and the importance of fees.

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ETFs compete with just about everything, including mutual funds, options, derivatives, and even single security investing. Another competitor is direct indexing, which means investing in a customized portfolio directly -- bypassing the fund's "wrapper" altogether. 

On this week’s Trillions, Joel and Eric sit down with Brian Langstraat, the CEO of Parametric, the largest direct indexing provider. He explains what direct indexing is, who it's best for, what the benefits and drawbacks are, and why it isn’t really an “ETF killer,” as some have claimed. Morgan Barna of Bloomberg Intelligence joins the discussion as well.

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No one person has had a bigger impact on the fund industry than Vanguard founder Jack Bogle, the legendary investor who invented indexing and popularized low-fee mutual funds. One of Vanguard's biggest advantages: Its mutual fund ownership structure, which is an original Bogle breakthrough.

Bogle now thinks other firms will have to follow suit to survive in the future -- one of a few topics he plans to explore in his next book, Stay the Course: The Story of Vanguard and the Index Revolution (Wiley, October 2018). If he's right, the financial ecosystem is in for major changes.

During their visit to Vanguard, Joel and Eric also picked Bogle's brain on ETFs, financial advisors, active share, behavior, and Bitcoin for this special episode of Trillions.

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The idea of using leverage to layer one investment return, say equities, on top of another, say a managed futures strategy, is something institutional investors have been doing for decades under the term “portable alpha.” Now a suite of young, fast-growing exchange-traded funds have come along—they’re called “return stacking” ETFs—and they’re offering such layering to the masses.

On this episode, Joel and Eric speak with Corey Hoffstein, chief executive and chief information officer of Newfound Research and one of the masterminds behind the Return Stacked ETF suite. They discuss how these ETFs work, where they fit in a portfolio and why this is a more responsible use of leverage than the kind that blew up the market in 2008. 

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Government reports are known more for curing insomnia than providing inspiration for revolutionary products. The October 1987 Market Break Report might be an exception. A paragraph deep in the SEC's 800-page white paper happened to outline a “product” for trading baskets of stocks. On this episode of “The ETF Story,” you'll learn how those words gave Nate Most and Steve Bloom the idea for what would become the exchange-traded fund. You'll also hear from Vanguard founder John Bogle, who passed on Most's pitch -- and who may have shaped the ETF in the process. 

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Everything in the market is at or around all-time highs, yet the market feels fragile at the same time. Whether it's the delta variant or inflation, there's always something to worry about. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel speak with Bloomberg Intelligence's chief equity strategist (and Eric's boss!), Gina Martin Adams. They talk about her macro views, inflation, value vs growth, the Federal Reserve, the bond market, which ETFs investors should watch in the second half of the year, and more. They also discuss where Eric has room for improvement.  

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ESG seems to have went from all the rage to yesterday's news as ETFs tracking these strategies have been hit with big stretches of underperformance and outflows while media interest has waned. What happened? And where does it go from here? 

On this episode of Trillions, Joel and Eric discuss and debate this with Rob Du Boff and Shaheen Contractor, ESG analysts for Bloomberg Intelligence as well as hosts of a new ESG podcast called ESG Currents.

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Everybody loves the 60/40 portfolio. And why not? It's worked really well for a long time, especially the past decade when both stocks (the 60) and bonds (the 40) went up. Yet investors fear the current inflationary environment could push both down. Enter “return stacking,” which attempts to solve this conundrum. Investors get the standard 60/40 allocation, only it’s leveraged in a way to add diversification and protection. (Oh, and by the way, that frees up a chunk of your portfolio for other exposures so you can have your cake and eat it, too….or at least that's what the backtest shows.) 

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Corey Hoffstein, chief investment officer of Newfound Research, and Rodrigo Gordillo, president and portfolio manager of ReSolve Asset Management. Together, the two pioneered the concept with a widely-circulated research paper (which you can find at returnstacking.com) and an open-source model portfolio that allows anyone to implement the concept. The approach means higher fees than most ETF-based portfolios, but as the group discusses, inflation and rising rates mean investors might want to consider reconsidering their toolbox.

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Just as Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak weren’t the only two geeks in a garage working on a computer in the 1970s, the AMEX wasn’t the only exchange looking to get a market basket instrument listed. The late 1980s saw multiple attempts to create something like an ETF, including SuperShares, Equity Index Participation Shares, Cash Index Participation Shares and the Toronto 35 Index Participation Units. 

Ultimately, SPY gets – and deserves – the lion’s share of the credit as the first ETF. But by no means was AMEX alone in the race; they were just the winners. This episode looks at the race, the players involved and why their products became historical footnotes. 

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The market for exchange-traded funds is getting nasty. Especially for new ETFs. Carving out a niche for one is becoming increasingly difficult.

There are already more than 2,000 exchange-traded products out there and the market has started to feel saturated. Only about 1 percent of new ETF proposals actually ever make it to market. And of that 1 percent that do, 10 of them flop when they get there for every one that takes off. A great concept, a clever ticker symbol and a sharp pitch -- something that’s both clear and powerful -- are crucial. So too is lining up seed capital. An ETF’s chance of success increases markedly if it comes with some initial money behind it.

So, given this trend in the market, we dedicated this episode of Trillions to a competition in the Bloomberg newsroom -- a Shark Tank-esque sort of showdown -- to see who could come up with the best pitch for a new ETF.

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Nobody deserves the nickname Mr. ETF as much as Reggie Browne, principal of GTS and a renowned market maker. He's had an amazing behind-the-scenes vantage these past few decades because almost everyone launching a new ETF comes to ask for his blessing—and seek his seed capital. 

This special episode of Trillions was recorded in front of a live audience as a Bloomberg New Voices event. Eric and his guest co-host, Scarlet Fu of Bloomberg Quicktake, interview Reggie about how ETFs are born, whether they need a rating system, the prospects of a bitcoin ETF, and why theme ETFs such as ARK have staying power. Started in 2018, Bloomberg New Voices began as an effort to increase female representation on Bloomberg TV and in Bloomberg News coverage; it's since expanded to include Black and Latinx executives. For more information, or to participate in the Bloomberg New Voices media training program, please visit www.bloomberg.com/newvoices.

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The crypto market may not be dead, but it’s arguably in a temporary coma thanks to the spectacular implosion of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX. The bankrupt crypto exchange, with billions of dollars of customer funds allegedly missing, has spooked all but the hardcore believers and potentially set the digital asset class back by years. 

On this episode of Trillions, we sit down with James Seyffart of Bloomberg Intelligence and reporter Katie Greifeld to discuss what this means for exchange-traded fund investors and the likelihood a spot Bitcoin ETF will get approved. We also take a look at what’s going on with Grayscale Bitcoin Trust.

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Would you give up some stock market upside for some downside protection? That's the value proposition for a fast growing new category of annuity-like ETFs that do just that. They are the creation of ETF veteran Bruce Bond, who is known to many as the founder of PowerShares. 

On this week's Trillions we speak with Bruce as well as Carolina Wilson from Bloomberg News about what sparked the idea for the products, how they work and what the drawbacks are. 

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One of the biggest rising trends in the ETF world is the rise of model portfolios, which are almost like pre-packaged meals. On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel -- along with Morgan Barna, an ETF research associate with Bloomberg Intelligence -- speak with Tim Clift, chief investment strategist at Envestnet, one of these proverbial "supermarkets" where advisers go shopping on behalf of their clients. They discuss how ETFs get on the platform as well as who makes and uses the models.

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South Korea is having a moment. Between the stellar rise of K-pop and worldwide film hits such as Parasite and Squid Game, the country has established itself as a power to be reckoned with when it comes to global entertainment. This level of success is exactly why a young man by the name of Jangwon Lee decided to launch—you guessed it—The KPOP and Korean Entertainment exchange-traded fund. 

We speak with Lee, chief executive of CT Investments and Content Technologies, and reporter Isabelle Lee about the size and scope of K-pop’s reach and the broader Korean entertainment market, how the ETF works and the challenges with launching a theme ETF in today’s especially rough-and-tumble market. 

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Covering ETFs this year was like trying to hit a constantly moving target. Businessweek's annual “Jealousy List” -- stories by other outlets that the magazine's staff wish they would've published -- inspired Eric and Joel to bring an ETF version of the idea to Trillions. On this episode, Katherine Greifeld, Claire Ballentine, and Yakob Petersseil of Bloomberg News, who specialize in covering ETFs, join them to discuss a few of the articles they wish they had written this year, about topics such as ETNs, volatility, target date funds, and concerns about index funds. Honorees include New York's Josh Barro; ETF Trends's Dave Nadig; WSJ's Akane Otani, Sebastian Pellejero and Chana Schoenberger; and Institutional Investor's Leanna Orr. Eric also highlights some of his favorites by his colleagues at Bloomberg News. 

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There's the Spy Kids and then there's the SPY Kids, aka the 11 millennials that unwittingly control the fate of the world's largest and most traded ETF.

The $250 billion SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust is pinned to their longevity, thanks to a quirk in the archane legal structure used by some early ETFs. Like other unit investment trusts, SPY has a set termination date and will expire in 2118, or 20 years after the last of these twenty-somethings die.

On this episode of Trillions, Joel, Eric and Bloomberg News reporter Rachel Evans track down three of the SPY kids to discuss their connection to the birth of ETFs, their newfound fame -- and why they wish there was some money in it for them. 

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While the rise of ETFs has been good for ETFs, it has come at the expense of many mutual fund managers -- humans who have seen about $1 trillion in outflows over the past four years. The situation has confounded many active fund companies and fueled consolidation in the industry. Now, a prominent active fund advocate and ETF critic says he’s found a better strategy: mutual funds with performance-based fees.

On this episode of Trillions, Joel and Eric speak with Peter Kraus, former CEO of Alliance Bernstein, who discusses his new endeavor, Aperture Investors; also joining the conversation is Sonali Basak, a finance reporter with Bloomberg News. Kraus plans to offer actively managed mutual funds that cost about the same as a passive ETF -- unless his portfolio managers outperform their benchmarks and generate alpha. Aligning compensation with performance, Kraus says, is a better incentive than charging a fee based on assets under management. The episode also covers shortcomings of the ETF, why active management needs a dose of creative destruction and how a portfolio might benefit from performance-linked fees. 

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ETF flows are one of the best ways to get inside the mind of investors. They tell you which asset classes, sectors, strategies and specific ETFs both traders and long-term investors are favoring. But interpreting flows is as much art as science. On this week’s Trillions, Joel and Eric are joined by Todd Rosenbluth of CFRA to dissect ETF inflows and outflows from the first half of what is at once both a typical and atypical year.

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As the second quarter comes to a close, Trillions reflects on some of the interesting trends and takeaways that have emerged so far this year -- and also explores a few things that may yet come to pass. Joel and Eric are joined by Todd Rosenbluth, ETF analyst for CFRA, and Sarah Ponczek, an ETF and markets reporter for Bloomberg News and co-host of the new What Goes Up podcast. Topics discussed by the group include fixed-income ETFs, sectors, new launches, ESG, marijuana, the non-transparent active ETF model, Michigan sports, Tom Hanks, and Family Ties. 

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This month, Bloomberg is excited to bring you a brand new show. Every Friday on What'd You Miss This Week, we'll feature the most interesting interviews from Bloomberg's daily market close show, "What'd You Miss" hosted by Scarlet Fu, Julia Chatterley and Joe Weisenthal. We want to take you beyond the headlines and bring you a unique perspective on the week's top stories, and those you may just have missed. It's the perfect way to kick off your weekend. Be sure to subscribe now, so you don't miss a thing!

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What is the best ETF for the long-term? How important is index selection? Is there a pot ETF? Can you get private equity exposure through an ETF? These are just some of the questions that Joel and Eric attempt to answer in this episode of Trillions where they dig into the proverbial "mailbag" of questions from listeners on various platforms. 

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For years active mutual funds have been looking for a way to utilize the benefits of the ETF structure without having to show their holdings every day. They may have finally found a solution, but will it be enough?

Joel and Eric are joined by Dan McCabe of Precidian Investments and Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News, who wrote about McCabe's non-transparent active ETF structure in the latest issue of Bloomberg Markets magazine. McCabe, who's licensing his structure to the likes of BlackRock, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, discusses how this decade-in-the-making development came to pass and the benefit it might provide investors while addressing industry headwinds and competition. 

Eric, Joel, and Rachel begin the episode with a brief discussion of Schwab's move to eliminate commissions -- the latest flare-up in the ETF trading war -- as well the new ETF Rule the SEC finalized last week. 

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It’s the third quarter and exchange-traded fund investors have finally gotten their FOMO bug back. While they’re currently plowing money into equities, how long can the good times last? This is just one of many trends to watch in the second half. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Athanasios Psarofagis, a Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst, about five big stories to watch in the third and fourth quarters of 2023. These include the Bitcoin ETF race, the dethroning of cash, the new “share class” to know about and how active’s rise is upended ETF issuers. 

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While most of the money flowing into exchange-traded funds goes into the cheaper ones, investors are willing to pay up for certain things. And after all, ETF issuers have to pay the bills somehow. Figuring out how to price an ETF so it’s both appealing to investors and generates revenue is one of the more unsung arts of the industry.  

On this episode, Joel and Eric speak with Athanasios Psarofagis, an ETF analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, and Bloomberg reporter Katie Greifeld about BI’s recent ETF revenue study, which includes a breakdown of fee income generated by issuers and individual products. The conversation also touches on whether the rise of passive investing has impacted markets in the way some observers say. 

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The first exchange-traded fund television show ever created, Bloomberg’s ETF IQ, just finished its first year on the air. On this episode, we talk to its anchors, Matt Miller and Katie Greifeld, about what goes into making the program, some of its highlights and recurring themes. These include the resurgence of active management, ESG’s struggles, investing amid rising interest rates and the wild world of indie issuers. 

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The day that Mark Zuckerberg announced he was changing the name of Facebook to Meta Platforms, the Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF ($META) found a new trajectory. Since then, the ETF—which holds companies such as Nvidia, Roblox, Unity, Microsoft, and, well, Meta—has seen assets grow 6-fold and volume jump 50-fold. Much like $HACK, which also benefited from being the right idea at the right time, META is fast on its way to becoming a billion-dollar ETF—mostly because of a big news event.

Eric and Joel explore the metaverse—and the investing opportunities it could bring—with Matthew Ball, managing partner of EphyllionCo and the brain behind the ETF; Matt Kanterman, who covers gaming as a senior analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence; and Rebecca Sin, an ETF analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. The group discusses how to think about the metaverse, what's at stake for companies, why investors are so excited, AR and VR applications, the size of the virtual economy, Robux vs crypto, and more.

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It was nothing short of a spectacular year for the U.S. stock market. Oh, and fixed income. And emerging markets. And gold. Basically everything went up — even if it didn’t necessarily feel that way. But why exactly? And what might next year hold for investors? How crucial is the Fed? The election? So many questions...

On this episode of Trillions we talk all things markets with Michael Regan and Sarah Ponczek from one of our favorite fellow Bloomberg podcasts called “What Goes Up?” in what may be the greatest crossover event since the Harlem Globetrotters landed on Gilligan’s Island. 

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When markets plummet like they have this year, investors want to grab onto something—anything—that isn’t in free-fall. High-dividend exchange-traded funds, with their exposures to the energy and utilities sectors, have emerged as a rare bright spot, or at least a less-dim one. They’ve seen $25 billion in inflows already, which is a record—one that could double by the end of the year. 

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Todd Rosenbluth, head of research at VettaFi, and reporter Suzanne Woolley about a category of ETFs punching above their weight. They discuss some of the noteworthy ETFs, including $VYM, $DVY, $HDV, $DHS; analyze holdings and performances, and share how investors can dabble with these made-for-the-moment products.

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The US Securities and Exchange Commission is busier than Santa’s elves these days as it scrambles to work with exchange-traded fund issuers to fine-tune offering documents ahead of the likely approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs. While this ten year-long saga seems to be nearing an end, approving them will create a whole new world of products—and regulation.

On this episode, Joel Weber, Eric Balchunas and Bloomberg reporter Katie Greifeld speak with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce in front of an audience at Bloomberg’s 8th Annual ETFs in Depth conference. Topics discussed include Bitcoin and crypto ETFs, as well as other topics on the SEC’s radar, such as ETF share classes, the growing size of big passive fund companies as well as a steady stream of more complex products. 

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For every stock that enters an index like the S&P 500 or Russell 1000, another must exit. One might assume these “deletions” are a sorrowful bunch whose demotion to the B-team means they’re no longer worthy of your portfolio. Yet Rob Arnott, founder of Research Affiliates and a longtime champion of “smart beta,” discovered that many of these rejects tend to perform better after being dropped from the indexes.

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Arnott about his new exchange-traded fund, $NIXT, which holds dozens of such stocks with equal-weighting. They discuss how the ETF—Arnott’s first launch—may complement your portfolio, what’s behind the performance, how the portfolio rebalances and why smart beta has endured.

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Worry? What worries? As the market hits new all-time highs, investors are “comfortably bullish,” according to research by Bloomberg Intelligence. They’re also bullish on exchange-traded funds, according to BI’s first-ever ETF survey. What if anything could derail this state of optimism? And how is the current enthusiasm different from the meme-stock euphoria and previous all-time highs of 2021?

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst Athanasios Psarofagis about his new greed/fear index, which uses several ETF metrics. They also comb through the survey’s findings, which show a growing interest in ETFs and active management.

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In investing, a black swan event is something almost nobody sees coming—and to make a bet on the outcome of that unforeseen event has always been expensive and complicated. Inflation upending the market over the past year, and the Federal Reserve’s pivot to higher interest rates, has sparked interest among investors looking to hedge this particular type of “tail risk.”

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with Meb Faber, founder of Cambria and host of podcast “The Meb Faber Show.” Faber has designed two exchange-traded funds in this space, $TAIL and $FAIL. They also speak with reporter Denitsa Tsekova, as the group discusses how tail-risk ETFs work, where they fit in a portfolio and whether you even need them. 

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Bitcoin exchange-traded funds, which were finally introduced earlier this year after intense regulatory scrutiny, have already become some of the most successful ETF launches ever. For months it seemed that spot ETFs for Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, might linger in a similar purgatory — and then, after some back and forth with issuers, regulators finally blessed them. About 10 products began trading in mid-July; they've seen healthy inflows, though Bitcoin ETFs were in a different league.

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber welcome stacy-marie ishmael, an executive editor at Bloomberg News who oversees crypto, digital payments and cross-asset coverage, to the podcast. They discuss the differences between Bitcoin and Ether, what happened during the approval process, how the various Ether ETFs compare, what we've learned since their launch, and what this might mean for future crypto ETFs.

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From inflation and the Federal Reserve, China and Russia, fundamentals and Bitcoin, there’s no shortage of themes for investors to think about in 2023. And while we can’t give you investing advice, we can give you a few tickers to watch.

On this episode, Eric and Joel take a tour of Bloomberg Intelligence’s listicle of ETFs for the year ahead. They’re joined by James Seyffart and Athanasios Psarofagis of Bloomberg Intelligence as well as Scarlet Fu of Bloomberg News. Among the ETFs discussed are $UTEN, $COWZ, $AVUV, $DHUP, $RSX, $KCE, $VXU,S $TSLQ, $VTV, $GBTC, $MCH, $TGN, $XCCC, $STRV, $UDVD, $INFL, $RMAU and $JREU

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With meme stock mania in full bloom again, many are asking why there isn't an ETF to play it. While there is some debate over whether a meme ETF is possible at all, there is an ETF out there that gets pretty close and counts AMC and GameStop as its top two holdings. The ETF is the SoFi 50 ETF (SFYF) which tracks the top 50 stocks that are held by the retail traders who use SoFi's brokerage platform. And while its up big it hasn't seen the rush of flows we are accustomed to seeing when an ETF surges like this.

On this episode of Trillions we speak with John Gardner, the Business Head of Invest at SoFi, and the brains behind SFYF and the other ETFs they offer. We speak to him about this 'lightening in a bottle' moment with SFYF as well as SoFi's other ETFs and how they fit into the company's bigger business plans. 

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What do you get when you cross ComiCon, the Catalina Wine Mixer and low-cost passive investing? You get "Inside ETFs," the world's largest ETF conference, which is getting bigger and more colorful by the year, in no small part to the growing mountain of flows coming into ETFs each year. 

The event – which has grown from 450 people to 2,400 in eleven years featured panels, presentations and booths on everything from Vanguard to VIX and from Bitcoin to Quincy Jones. 

Joel and Eric discuss takeaways from the event as well as some select interviews on the ground, which include issuers both big and small as well as self-described “ETF nerds” and one famous music producer.

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When life handed Sarah Newton lemons, she used ETFs to make lemonade. Or at least to keep herself busy. On this week's Trillions we speak to Sarah, a self-taught, do-it-yourself ETF trader who says she's still up after 6 years. She shares her fascinating story of how she got here as well as tips on trading ETFs and what areas of the market she likes for 2019.

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BlackRock and Vanguard collectively own about 15% of every US company, but are they voting their shares in a way that aligns with investors in their funds? One new exchange-traded fund company, Strive Asset Management, says they aren’t, claiming they’ve gone against their fiduciary duty by becoming too “woke” and forming an “ideological cartel.” Now it has plans to offer alternatives.

We talk to Vivek Ramaswamy and Anson Frericks, co-founders of Strive. They plan to launch ETFs similar to those of BlackRock and Vanguard, but promise to keep politics and ESG concerns out of their voting. They discuss criticisms of ESG investing, stakeholder vs. shareholder capitalism and what Ramaswamy calls “excellence capitalism.” They also talk about how Strive will compete against the two biggest asset managers on the planet, and its noteworthy backers—including Peter Theil and Bill Ackman.

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First Trust, the sixth-largest issuer of US exchange-traded funds, has managed to stay mostly under the radar in the investing world — and yet it's also perfected a lucrative, Vanguard-proof business model. The company's products are directed more at financial advisors than the retail world, and their funds, most of which are actively managed, have higher fees than typical index-tracking ETFs. Enter the First Trust sales force, which wields steak dinners, personal coaching, sports tickets and Hermès scarves to win business — practices that have attracted the attention of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Bloomberg News reporters Emily Graffeo and Max Abelson about their recent First Trust story, “An All-American Finance Empire Drew Billions—and a Regulator’s Attention,” for Bloomberg Businessweek. They discuss CEO Jim Bowen's approach, how the company has distinguished itself from competitors, and why Finra is investigating the company's sales tactics.

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Exchange-traded funds could go from $9 trillion in global assets today to $30 trillion in the next decade as investors far and wide continue to migrate from mutual funds. This is the prediction that Brown Brothers Harriman reached in their 10th Annual ETF Survey last month.  

On this episode, Joel and Eric speak with Shawn McNinch, Global ETF Head at BBH, to pore over the survey, including questions on how ETFs are selected, what areas investors want to see more products covering and the differences between the US and other regions.  

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How much does the average person know about ETFs? What about an ETF analyst? On this episode of Trillions we put the experts knowledge to the test in our first ever ETF trivia game featuring two competitive teams made up of Todd Rosenbluth, head of ETF research at VettaFi, Lara Crigger, Editor-in-Chief of VettaFi, Katie Greifeld of Bloomberg News and Athanasios Psarofagis of Bloomberg Intelligence. Questions range across asset classes and historical periods and the winning team gets a free sushi lunch with Joel and Eric. 

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One of the most interesting developments in finance this year has been the sudden popularity of the SPAC, or special-purpose acquisition company. A novel way to raise money and take companies public, SPACs are flourishing with more than 60 formed since the beginning of their big breakout year. And while they've certainly made headlines, they've actually existed for years. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel discuss the phenomenon and what it all means with Julian Klymochko of Accelerate Financial Technologies, a SPAC pioneer whose Canadian-listed $ARB ETF offers some exposure to what he considers a new asset class, as well as Josef Schuster of IPOX Schuster, whose index is used for the $FPX ETF that tracks recent IPOs -- and now one SPAC. 

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Everybody has a friend (or three) who's gone "full crypto." So Joel’s ears perked up when a friend from high school and college, Char Boger, told him about her interest not in Bitcoin — the more common refrain — so much as publicly traded Bitcoin-mining companies.

On this episode, Eric and Joel venture into Bitcoin mining by welcoming Boger, a DIY investor and soccer mom, to the podcast as well as Ethan Vera, who’s the co-founder of both Luxor Mining and Viridi Funds, which launched the first Bitcoin mining ETF ($RIGZ) in 2021. The group discusses Bitcoin mining and Vera's ETF, with Boger providing the perspective of a passionate retail investor.

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More than 1,000 ETFs have been liquidated and sent to the proverbial ETF graveyard. But a select few have been resurrected by issuers who think that either the time is right for the idea or they have the ways and means to make it work. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel speak with Athanasios Psarofagis of Bloomberg Intelligence about his "Lazarus List"—ETFs that have failed, sometimes at inopportune moments, only to later get another chance. The list includes target-date ETFs as well thematic ETFs—which track airlines, shipping and luxury goods—and two exotic offerings. 

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Are active non-transparent ETFs going to be a hit or flop? How can ESG succeed when everyone’s definition is different? What can little issuers do to succeed in an industry dominated by giants? But how can giant asset managers make money if investors want everything for free? These were some of the big questions debated at this year’s Inside ETFs, a conference and networking extravaganza featuring issuers, advisors, service providers, the media and even a few celebrities.

We discuss these big themes featuring audio clips recorded on the ground at the event from key attendees as well as in studio commentary from first time attendees, Claire Ballentine and Katherine Greifeld of Bloomberg News. 

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There are over 120 U.S. ETF issuers, but only one has more than $1 trillion in assets, over 300 products and knows what it is like to beat Vanguard: BlackRock. The asset manager made the equivalent of the Louisiana Purchase when it acquired iShares from Barclays in 2009, a move that has made them the most dominant player in the industry. Joel and Eric interview Martin Small, head of U.S. iShares, about ETFs, investing and his insatiable appetite for guitars. 

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You never go full crypto, right? Yet clearly some in the ETF industry see a massive opportunity, hence the steady talent trickle to the nascent space. To date, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has received more than 25 filings for ETFs featuring Bitcoin. They're effectively the participants in a Cannonball Run-esque race to gain the SEC's approval -- and whoever earns that blessing and is first to market could have a multi-billion-dollar product. But is this asset class even ready for primetime? How would it even work? What roadblocks must be overcome? 

On this episode of Trillions, Joel and Eric are joined by the perfect guest to discuss all of this: Matt Hougan. The vice president of Bitwise Asset Management and a veteran of the ETF industry, Hougan has deep knowledge of both industries. He's also a face in the Cannonball Run race. His firm just filed for the Bitwise Hold 10 Cryptocurrency Index Fund, which is the first proposed ETF that's a basket of cryptocurrencies. Hougan also gives his take on many of the biggest trends in the ETF industry, from zero-fee funds to passive's future.

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The killers of Berta Caceres had every reason to believe they’d get away with murder. More than 100 other environmental activists in Honduras had been killed in the previous five years, yet almost no one had been punished for the crimes. Bloomberg’s Blood River follows a four-year quest to find her killers – a twisting trail that leads into the country’s circles of power.

Blood River premieres on July 27.

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Separating hope from hype can feel especially daunting when you look at ETF investing through an ESG (environmental, social, and governance) lens. One reason is that, while ESG draws a lot of media attention, the category itself has only drawn about $7 billion despite dozens of products and new launches. Is apathy or subjectivity the bigger culprit here? Or are investors simply befuddled by yet another acronym?

This week, Joel and Eric explore ESG investing, why it matters and how to practically apply it to a portfolio using an ETF. They are joined by ESG advisor and expert Graham Sinclair as well as Matt Bartolini of SPDR, who's helped bring several ESG ETFs to market.

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Acronyms are a popular way to shorthand especially promising emerging markets. Take the BRICs: Brazil, Russia, India and China. Or how about MIST: Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea and Turkey. And here's a new one from Bloomberg Intelligence: Africa's CUTEs, for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia. These catchy terms tend to make buzz because investors see such vast economic potential in these countries -- but where there's potential, you'll also find risk.

Ahead of Bloomberg's New Economy Forum in Singapore on Nov. 6-7, Joel and Eric take a tour of these potential growth engines with VanEck emerging market analysts Patricia Gonzalez and Ola El-Shawarby. They share how they approach investing in countries such as Brazil, Peru, South Korea, Nigeria, and Egypt and give their thoughts on why active investing can outperform passive. Eric also highlights ETFs that can give investors single-country exposures.

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Investing in stock and bond markets during a boring, decade-long bull market is easy enough. It’s a little more difficult when everything is trending downward, inflation is at record highs and even Cardi B is tweeting about recession jitters. And yet, strong flows into exchange-traded funds and index funds show investors are very much willing to follow this wealth-creation strategy.

Eric and Joel speak with Nick Maggiulli, chief operating officer at Ritholtz Wealth Management, about his new book, “Just Keep Buying.” They discuss saving versus investing, the importance of income-producing assets, international exposure, index investing and more.

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Exchange-traded funds have a special super power: tax efficiency. Investors pay taxes when they sell, but not when others in the fund sell. Yet that super power is suddenly in jeopardy. A recent bill proposed by Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore) would repeal a tiny section in the tax code that allows for ETF's in-kind creations and redemptions to be non-taxable events. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel invite Professor Jeffrey Colon of Fordham University, a tax expert who's critiqued ETFs before and influenced Wyden's bill, and Dave Nadig, director of research for ETF Trends, to discuss the proposal. Some chaos ensues. 

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Unlike most declines, stocks and bonds have been sinking together so far this year. Rising inflation and a hawkish U.S. Federal Reserve are providing little comfort to investors. And yet ETFs continue to see massive flows.

Eric and Joel speak with Gina Martin Adams, chief equity analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, as well as Jon Maier, chief investment officer of Global X ETFs, about the search for the bottom, the odds of a recession, Fed policy, trending ETFs, Twitter’s love of the word “capitulation” and more.

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After 17 years, the Bank of Japan finally scrapped the world’s last negative interest policy. The central bank also announced it will cease buying exchange-traded funds, an effort originally intended to revitalize the corporate sector and pump cash into the economy. So what becomes of its $475 billion ETF hoard? That’s to be determined, but just as Japan is changing course, China’s so-called “national team” has begun purchasing a handful of key Chinese ETFs.

On this episode, Eric and Joel are joined by Bloomberg Intelligence’s Rebecca Sin, a Hong Kong-based ETF analyst and host of the forthcoming podcast Tiger Money. They discuss what might come next for Japan, why China is following a similar playbook and what it all means for investors and the global economy. 

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The biggest exchange-traded fund conference in the world has come and gone. But we have you covered.

The event, which has grown from 450 people to over 2,000 in just 12 years, featured panels, presentations and booths on everything from artificial intelligence to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, and participants ranging from Paul Tudor Jones to Michael Lewis.

Aided by select interviews, Joel and Eric discuss key takeaways from the event.

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Neeeeeeerrrrrrddsss! The term used to be an insult but now it’s (mostly) a compliment. At least that's the case in the world of ETFs, where passions run high for these low-cost, liquid funds. Used by long-term retail investors and institutional traders, there's a wide range of opinion on which Exchange Traded Funds are best, which trends are smart and what the future may hold.

On this week’s Trillions, Joel and Eric spar with a colorful gang of ETF pundits in a McLaughlin Group-style roundtable. They discuss 20 hot issues in the ETF world, including whether fees are overrated, when a zero-fee ETF will arrive, whether ESG funds can ever find an audience, where innovation will come from and what ETF our panelists would use for their life savings.

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After years and years of drama, the US Securities and Exchange Commission finally let 10 spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds begin trading last week. The launches have been wildly successful. But now that these funds are in the wild, you probably have a few questions. And you're not alone! 

On this episode, Eric and Joel along with James Seyffart, ETF analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence—open up the mailbag to answer all your most pressing questions. 

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It took 15 years for an ideal environment to arrive for alternative exchange-traded funds—which employ or mimic hedge fund strategies—but their moment has finally come. They’ve grown assets by 25% this year as investors look for something to help offset the decline of 60/40 portfolios.

To truly understand how they work and what they track, however, requires a lot of due diligence.

On this episode of Trillions, we speak with senior reporter Katherine Burton, Andrew Beer, managing partner and portfolio manager at Dynamic Beta, and Bob Elliott, co-founder and chief executive of Unlimited. We discuss why hedge fund ETFs could be the next big thing, how they work and how to use them in a portfolio. 

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In barely a week, three banks a lot of people had never heard of—Silvergate, Silicon Valley and Signature—suddenly became toast. The US government found itself playing backstop to prevent an escalation as whipsawed investors hoped the worst was over.

But is it? And in what kind of funds can these banks stocks be found? How will they affect performance? Hint: It would have been a good week to short some of Jim Cramer’s top picks. 

On this episode, Eric and Joel speak with reporter Katie Greifeld and Athanasios Psarofagis and James Seyffart of Bloomberg Intelligence. They discuss which exchange-traded funds saw the most action and why, the impact on returns and volume, and some of the less obvious ripple effects.

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If exchange traded funds are ingredients and the portfolio is the meal, then ETF strategists are the master chefs.

One of the best chefs out there is Gary Stringer, president of Stringer Asset Management, an active manager that uses ETFs instead of individual securities to try and generate outperformance.

On this episode we go through Stringer’s ETF portfolio full of non-obvious picks, and ask him why he uses them—both the macro case and the product case. 

ETFs discussed include the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO), the Invesco Taxable Municipal Bond ETF (BAB), the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) and many, many more.

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In the ETF Terrordome, nothing comes easy for issuers -- even if your name is Goldman Sachs. The asset management arm of the storied Wall Street firm launched its first ETF five years ago. Investors have put about $20 billion into the funds to date, a decent start for a relative newcomer. Half those assets are in $GSLC, which was a true game-changer in the smart-beta category and may represent the future of active investing. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric and Joel -- along with Katherine Greifeld of Bloomberg News -- interview Cole Feinberg, an ETF specialist with Goldman, about how the firm views the industry, where the team sees white space, what's behind GSLC's success, and how a project like $JUST comes together with Paul Tudor Jones. 

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What’s the most sure-fire way to get a flight upgrade? How can you find the best, secret local restaurants by asking just one question? What's the first thing you should do when you get into a hotel room? On Bloomberg's new podcast Travel Genius, we'll give you those answers—and plenty more—as hosts Nikki Ekstein and Mark Ellwood quiz the world’s most experienced globetrotters for their tried-and-true travel hacks. Listen weekly, and even your work trips will go from a necessary evil to an expert art form. Plus, you'll be padding out your bucket list with dreams of amazing future vacations. 

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The creation story of the first exchange-traded fund is actually the best way to understand how they work. And it's not just educational, it's entertaining. Like the PC and the MP3, the story of the creation of SPY -- which turned 30 this year -- is full of characters, twists and turns, and subplots. In the end, the product launched an industry that's reshaping not just investing but the entire financial ecosystem. This six-episode miniseries will weave together interviews with the founding fathers and other key players that help investors better understand the ETF and how we got here.

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Just as a maker of organic salad dressing wants to get into Whole Foods, every ETF issuer is trying to get its products distributed by the fund superstores. Known as wirehouses by the industry, these mega-platforms from the likes of Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley service advisors with trillions in assets -- and can transform an ETF from zero to hero overnight. But only a minority of funds make it to their shelves. 

So how does an ETF get on these crucial platforms? By getting through the all-important gatekeeper. On this week's Trillions, we chat with Mariana Bush of Wells Fargo and Jon Maier of Global X about their extensive experience in this world of gatekeepers and keymasters. Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News co-hosts. 

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With many of the world's stock markets in turmoil, and interest rates on the rise in the U.S., it can be hard to spot investment opportunities. A popular Bloomberg article asks six experts where they would invest $10,000 right now. Some of those areas include Asian countries, tobacco stocks, companies profiting from the mobile payment trend as well as just a plain ol' broad market allocation. 

On this week's Trillions we speak to the author of the story, Suzanne Woolley, and personal finance writer Ben Steverman about these picks as well as the ETFs that can be used to play them. We also discuss what they are hearing from retail investors outside the financial bubble about the recent selloff and investing in general. 

When you’re done listening, you can read the article at https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-how-to-invest-10k/

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Cathie Wood of ARK is not the first highly concentrated active manager to shoot the lights out for half a decade while sparking a stampede of flows into their funds. There have been many throughout history but perhaps the one that most echoes ARK today is the famous Janus Twenty Fund, which dominated the latter half of the '90s and early 2000s with very similar returns and flows to what ARK is experiencing, albeit one met with a 50% downturn when the Internet bubble burst. 

On this episode of Trillions, we speak to Scott Schoelzel, the former PM of the Janus Twenty during the fund's magical stretch from 1998 to 2007. Having lived through the ups and downs of cycles, he gives us his thoughts on the current situation with ARK, advice for the firm's investors as well as his takes on the state of active management, ETFs, the Fed and what he's up to these days living out on his farm in Colorado. 

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After a fairly long period of peace in the ETF Fee War, an unprecedented outbreak occurred, which saw about 10 different issuers reducing or undercutting costs on a few dozen products, which included the first zero and negative fee ETFs. 

Smaller issuers such as SoFi and Salt have participated alongside market leaders BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street. Joel and Eric are joined by Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News for a dive into this two week fee cutting frenzy to break down what it means for investors and the industry. 

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A number of high-profile companies have gone public this year -- Lyft, Uber, Beyond Meat, Slack, and Zoom, to name just a few. Yet these new entrants into the public markets aren't included in major indexes at their launch, limiting most investors' exposure to the companies' early trading. While investors can always buy individual stocks, a few ETFs specialize in a catch-and-release strategy of buying companies that have recently listed and then holding them for only a few years -- and they have a history of outperforming their benchmarks. Gina Martin Adams of Bloomberg Intelligence and Carolina Wilson of Bloomberg News join Eric and Joel to discuss the recent flurry in IPO activity and what the holdings of these ETFs can bring to a portfolio.

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There’s rarely a dull moment covering ETFs. And this year, as well as the past decade, was no exception. The industry has solidified itself as the hottest destination for new cash, new firms and new ideas. 

On this last episode of the year for Trillions, Joel and Eric talk to Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News and Todd Rosenbluth of CFRA in a round table format getting their expert takes and outlooks on everything from flows, returns, issuers, launches, fees, active, ESG, themes, marketing and regulation. Eric and Todd also make a new bet!

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