ARK Launches Yet Another ETF, World Collectively Sighs And Braces For More Cathie Wood TV Appearances

In what is quickly becoming an example of “how to start a brand new actively managed ETF about some new buzzword term every single day”, Cathie Wood is launching yet another ETF.

Adding to her flagship “Innovation” ARKK ETF, alongside of her Genomics and Self-Driving ETFs, Cathie Wood is now starting an ETF focused on transparency.

What does that mean? We didn’t really have any idea, either.

But according to Bloomberg the ETF will “closely follow an index that excludes industries including alcohol, banking, gambling and oil and gas”. Doesn’t sound like tons of fun, if you ask us.

Yet despite the supposed focus on virtue signaling (we’re guessing that’s why Wood is excluding gambling and oil and gas), Wood still has massive exposure to names like DraftKings elsewhere and will be including companies like Apple and Nike – notorious for their labor practices – in the latest ETF offering.

The inclusion of these names hasn’t stopped Wood from trying to position this ETF as some type of pious pathway into the world of investing.

Friend of Zero Hedge and Bloomberg ETF expert Eric Balchunas said: “This is kind of Ark’s version of ESG. It’s intriguing because it doesn’t have a moralizing vibe to it, it’s like they’re saying if you go after transparency, you’re probably going to buy good companies.”

The question of Wood is spreading herself too thin could start to come up if her funds can’t continue to perform. This ETF marks the second ETF launch for ARK this year, despite the firm’s “flagship” ARKK fund down 2% and underperforming the S&P this year. 

“An index-based ESG ETF doesn’t necessarily scream ‘disruptive innovation,’ which ARK has branded themselves around,” Nate Geraci, president of the ETF Store, concluded.

And of course, what would the launch of a new ETF be without the TV appearances to go with it? Expect to see Wood taking every opportunity to shill her latest “actively managed” product on Bloomberg and CNBC in coming weeks. We’ll have the “mute” button ready…