US firms launch ETF to capitalize on Trump's deregulation push
A group of three investment management firms teamed up to launch an exchange-traded fund that will invest in companies they expect to benefit from deregulation and free capital markets, the partners in the venture said on Tuesday.
The Free Markets ETF, which began trading on the NYSE on Tuesday, will invest in companies in any industry and of any size that its managers think are likely to benefit from the pursuit of deregulation by President Donald Trump in his second administration.
"I started thinking about this last summer when the Supreme Court overturned the Chevron doctrine," said Hal Lambert, founder of Point Bridge Capital, one of the three firms that will manage the ETF's portfolio. In June 2024, Supreme Court justices ruled 6-3 to overturn a 1984 decision that had given regulatory agencies latitude to interpret the laws they administer.
"That was a massive win for companies dealing with big regulatory burdens, and the fact that Trump won (the election) will allow this deregulation process to happen even more speedily," said Lambert.
After the election, Lambert connected with Michael Gayed, portfolio manager for Tactical Rotation Management and Todd Stankiewicz of SYKON Asset Management, to develop the ETF. They partnered with Tidal Investments, a "white label" ETF issuer that provides the platform and operational support for other companies to launch their own branded ETFs.
"There just wasn't another product out there that invested in deregulation as a theme," said Gayed, who said the portfolio will include everything from bitcoin and gold to shares in companies that look likely to benefit from deregulation, from mid-sized financial firms to the nuclear energy industry.
Its largest holdings include stakes in Uranium Energy Corp , Robinhood Markets and Old National Bancorp .
"This is about profits, not politics," said Gayed, although he added that the current U.S. political trends are what he expects to translate into profits for the ETF's portfolio.
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