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Cathie Wood’s Ark avoids banks and candy as well as oil and tobacco in the new ESG-focused transparency fund
- ARK Transparency ETF will invest in 100 US $ 1 billion publicly traded companies
- The fund excludes controversial industries such as oil and tobacco
- Investors continue to invest money in ESG-driven and thematic strategies
Star US investor Cathie Wood’s Ark Investment Management will avoid banks and a number of controversial sectors with the launch of its new ARK Transparency ETF.
The strategy will focus on the environmental, social and leadership skills of the companies.
In a filing with the U.S. regulator earlier this week, it was revealed that Ark’s latest investor offer will invest in around 100 companies, valued at at least $ 1 billion each, that score highly for their transparency standards and overall reputation.
Its ESG focus means ARK Transparency does not invest in alcohol, chemical, fossil fuel transportation, gambling, metals, minerals, natural gas, oil or tobacco companies.
Ark Investment Management’s Cathie Wood strives for transparency in the latest offering
While the exclusion of these industries is common practice for funds with an ESG focus, ARK Transparency has taken the unusual step of also preventing investments in the banking or confectionery industry.
There has been a boom in ESG investing in recent years and it is expected to continue for some time. According to Bloomberg research, the global ESG fund market is well on the way to growing from currently $ 37.8 trillion to $ 53 trillion by 2025, which is more than a third of all fund assets.
Ark’s CEO and Chief Investment Officer Wood is best known for her media savvy and open approach to business.
She is committed to the social good that can be achieved through the disruptive power of technological advancement, especially after predicting Elon Musk’s Tesla will hit $ 3,000 in share price in 2025, compared to its current value of around $ 730.
Wood also believes that Bitcoin will one day hit $ 500,000, compared to its current value of $ 49,383 at the time of writing.
US investors can buy the ETF through their usual broker or investment app.
However, UK-based investors could face a challenge if they wanted to access Wood’s innovative strategies, as most of the country’s DIY investment platforms withdrew US funds following the introduction of new rules in 2018.
However, that does not mean that UK investors are lacking options to innovate in the low-cost world of exchange-traded funds.
So-called thematic ETFs, which target certain trends in global markets, are enjoying rapid growth in popularity and, according to Morningstar data, reached total assets of 32.4 billion euros in Europe alone this year.
Just yesterday, the microinvestment platform Wombat launched its newest offering, the Battery Boom Fund, which enables UK investors to get involved in the rapid growth in global adoption of battery and energy storage solutions.
The ETF’s largest holdings include hydrogen fuel cell systems developer Plug Power, and it allows investors to benefit from advances in battery technology powered by the increasing adoption of electric vehicles, which already account for more than half of global battery demand .
The fund offers investors exposure to companies across the battery ecosystem, including those involved in raw materials mining, manufacturing and new technologi
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