Roxanna Islam

Crypto tends to get framed as volatile prices and speculation. However, two growth drivers are quietly creating long-term support: stablecoins (crypto designed to stay relatively stable in value) and tokenization (putting traditional assets into more widely accessible tokens).

The defense industry is transforming into one of the most interesting areas of the market, particularly for investors seeking a stable growth alternative to higher-beta sectors like technology. Beyond its traditional industrial roots, the industry has expanded into a broader global opportunity that includes international defense spending, themes tied to space, and the rapid rise of drones and autonomous systems. This evolution has made defense a much more multifaceted investment story, with growth drivers that extend well beyond legacy defense and military companies. It has also fueled a fast growing market of Defense ETFs.

While the ETF industry is sometimes scrutinized for packaging niche investments into a retail wrapper, ETFs have historically been one of the key ways to democratize access to legitimate “hard-to-reach” investment strategies. The ETF wrapper has made many of these exposures more convenient to buy and easier to incorporate into portfolios. And for many retail investors, the barrier is removed for certain investments that have been historically targeted at instutional investors. This note provides an overview of some of the most significant alternatives (and some of the new, more obscure, yet in-demand alternatives) that have successfully been placed an ETF wrapper.

Crypto narratives have shifted. Tokenization and stablecoins, once considered more obscure blockchain use cases, have become some of the market’s most mainstream themes. At the same time, cryptocurrencies themselves have become less favored as investors pull back from more speculative parts of the market. However, demand for Bitcoin continues to persist, even in the middle of a tough market environment. Investors are choosing to remain more selective with altcoins and other crypto products. This note provides a look at crypto ETFs in terms of recent performance, flows, and new launches — particularly in the single asset category.

Last week, I published an update on the crypto ETF landscape, but one area worth revisiting is crypto equities—particularly Bitcoin miners. For many investors, miners can seem too niche, too volatile, or simply redundant now that spot Bitcoin ETFs exist. But that view misses how much the space has evolved. Bitcoin miners were once primarily seen as high-beta proxies for Bitcoin, especially before spot Bitcoin ETFs made direct exposure easier. Today, they offer an equity-based way to access the digital asset ecosystem, with growing exposure to artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, data centers, and high-performance computing (HPC). That helps explain why Bitcoin miner ETFs have recently outperformed spot Bitcoin ETFs, even as flows into the category remain relatively muted.

Cannabis stocks have seen renewed investor interest as federal policy momentum improves. The most important recent development was the placement of FDA-approved marijuana products and state-regulated medical marijuana products from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. Schedule III drugs are considered to have a lower abuse potential than Schedule I or II drugs, although they still remain controlled substances. This does not mean full federal legalization, but could have improved accounting/tax benefits and increased access to capital for cannabis operators. Investors and advisors who want to take advantage of potential regulatory upside may find it easiest to invest through ETFs. Here’s what you need to know.

Several years ago, semiconductor ETFs were often viewed as a Nvidia (NVDA) story. With Nvidia driving much of the group’s growth and performance, some investors questioned the need for broader exposure. But 2026 has shown why diversification can make a difference. While Nvidia remains a significant AI leader, other semiconductor stocks have outperformed this year as the AI trade broadens into memory, networking, custom chips, foundries, and equipment. For investors, it is a reminder to look beyond the headlines and understand what is under the hood of a semiconductor ETF.

Crypto equity ETFs (or blockchain ETFs) were once one of the main ways to access the crypto theme in an ETF wrapper. That changed after the January 2024 approval of spot bitcoin ETPs, which gave investors a simpler and more direct way to express a bitcoin view. As a result, blockchain equity ETFs lost some of their mainstream appeal. But they still serve a different role. These funds provide access to equity appreciation related to crypto adoption, capital markets activity, institutional infrastructure, and new blockchain use cases. Advisors and investors can use these ETFs as a thematic complement to their existing bitcoin exposure.

The consumer is still spending, but with a higher level of caution. Inflation remains a persistent pressure point, particularly for lower- and middle-income households. This has caused the U.S. personal saving rate to fall to 3.6% as of March 2026, leaving significantly less breathing room for discretionary purchases.

Issuers are still driving forward with crypto launches, with around 30 new products already launched so far in 2026. Understandably, net flows across the broader asset class have been weak due to pressured spot prices. Despite the macro headwind, certain launches have still managed to find notable success. Two of the most compelling launches this year sit at near-opposite ends of the spectrum: a strategic new spot Bitcoin ETF and the birth of the Hyperliquid ETF category.