Roxanna Islam

VettaFi discusses spot bitcoin and crypto thematic ETFs.

2023 was a year of surprises. These are five key sector themes illustrated in charts that dominated the ETF world this past year.

In 2024, inflation, interest rates, and the presidential election will likely be on top of ETF investors’ minds. Here are four other lesser-known trends and insights — both positive and negative — to consider in 2024.

After several years of uncertainty, spot bitcoin ETFs were finally approved by the SEC on January 10. The spot bitcoin ETF launch was monumental in several ways:

With lower interest rates now in sight and renewed confidence in the stock market, deal making activity should pick up in 2024 after a slow couple of years. For retail investors, this could lead to new opportunities to invest in emerging industries and the potential to capture early returns. But it typically isn’t easy to invest in IPOs or play the M&A market. Here are ways investors can use ETFs to take advantage of the current deal-making environment.

Bitcoin has fallen below $40,000 after rising to just under $50,000 before the spot bitcoin ETF launch. Many investors expected this to be the beginning of a price rally that would be extended later this year through the halving event and take us to prices seen in 2021. With excitement far below expected levels, bitcoin continues to be a divisive topic. But here is why it shouldn’t be.

Closed-end funds (CEFs) are relatively under the radar compared to peers like exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds. Closed-end funds are generally desirable for two reasons: 1) high income; and 2) premium/discount mechanism. But despite these higher yields, these funds are primarily invested in by a niche group of retail investors. Combining them with ETFs has allowed a broader group of investor access to these investments. But should investors look at passive or active ETFs when it comes to closed-end fund investing? This note discusses the difference between active and passive ETFs of CEFs.

I hear about the Magnificent Seven several times a day — seven companies and eight stocks that have dominated headlines for the past few months.

Explaining consumer spending involves a lot of contradictions. Consumer spending is strong. But consumers are stretched. Consumers are shifting spending to services like restaurants, travel, and concerts and away from goods. But certain goods like consumer staples should remain strong in economic downturns. E-commerce has been resilient relative to total retail sales. But only for certain segments. This note discusses those contradictions along with retail trends for 2024.

This week bitcoin prices reached over $60,000 — the highest level since November 2021. Since the launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in early January, demand continues to pile on. So far the nine new spot ETFs (ex-GBTC) have seen over $7 billion in net inflows.