Four of the best new funds in the evolving world of ETFs
The latest exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offer access to themes ranging from infrastructure to smart homes. David Stevenson takes a look at four of the best.


While money has been flooding into infrastructure and real-estate funds recently (as I noted two weeks ago) another type of listed fund is also now experiencing a fundraising boom: exchange-traded funds (ETFs). They are mostly thematic funds containing a small basket of stocks, in some cases fewer than 50. By contrast, most previous ETFs have been broader index trackers. The new ones are therefore riskier than buying a wide portfolio of companies.
From industrials to bitcoin
The most straightforward new ETF is Global X’s US Infrastructure Development UCITS ETF (LSE: PAVE). It holds 99 companies set to benefit from increasing infrastructure activity in the US, driven by President Biden’s $1.2trn Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Top holdings include Nucor, Eaton Corp, Kansas City Southern, and Vulcan Materials. Over 70% of the stocks in the fund are in the industrials sector, while materials and mining businesses make up the second-largest category of stocks.
Rize’s Digital Payments Economy UCITS ETF (LSE: PMNT) focuses on the rise of fintech-payment platforms. It tracks the Foxberry Euromonitor Digital Payments Economy USD Net Total Return index, which comprises over 60 companies developing novel payment solutions, such as Mastercard, Visa, American Express and Paypal, as well as digital-money players Coinbase Global and Voyager Digital. It’s a fascinating sector, and payments processors are the hot ticket in fintech at present. Note, however, that valuations – even for the blue-chip players – are looking stretched.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
HanETF’s latest launch, ETC Group Digital Assets & Blockchain Equity UCITS (LSE: KOIN), tracks an index with around 30 stocks involved in blockchain-based securitisation and payments, digital asset-mining companies, exchanges, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and stablecoins. Top holdings are likely to be Marathon Digital, which focuses on asset mining (the process whereby digital assets such as bitcoin are minted and released into circulation), Coinbase (a cryptocurrency exchange), Galaxy Digital (a blockchain specialist), and Riot Blockchain.
The top five holdings will probably comprise around 50% of the fund. It is based on the Solactive ETC Group Digital Assets and Blockchain Equity index and each stock is capped at 10% of the index. Other existing ETFs within this niche (Invesco’s Elwood Global Blockchain UCITS ETF, VanEck Vectors’ Digital Assets Equity UCITS ETF, and the Melanion BTC Equities Universe UCITS ETF) all charge over 0.65% in fees, while the KOIN ETF charges 0.6%. It’s cheaper but also more of a pure-play digital assets fund; some of the rival funds hold bigger, less focused technology outfits like Intel or chip giant TSMC.
Amazon’s Alexa-inspired ETF
Most of us have probably dabbled with Amazon or Google smart-home devices, but these are just the tip of the iceberg of home-automation innovation, a fast-growing segment. VanEck Vectors Smart Home Active UCITS ETF (LSE: CAVE) is designed to cash in on this trend.
It differs from the ETFs mentioned so far because it is actively managed. Until now, virtually all ETFs have involved passively tracking an index. An active ETF looks and feels like a cross between an index-tracking fund and an investment trust: there is an “index” comprising a portfolio of 60 companies that generate their revenue or maintain assets in the “smart home ecosystem”, but there is also an active manager (Dutch investment boutique Dasym) that selects and changes the companies in that index on a monthly basis. I expect to see a great many more of these actively managed ETFs in the next few years, blurring the boundary between ETFs and investment trusts.
Get the latest financial news, insights and expert analysis from our award-winning MoneyWeek team, to help you understand what really matters when it comes to your finances.

David Stevenson has been writing the Financial Times Adventurous Investor column for nearly 15 years and is also a regular columnist for Citywire.
He writes his own widely read Adventurous Investor SubStack newsletter at davidstevenson.substack.com
David has also had a successful career as a media entrepreneur setting up the big European fintech news and event outfit www.altfi.com as well as www.etfstream.com in the asset management space.
Before that, he was a founding partner in the Rocket Science Group, a successful corporate comms business.
David has also written a number of books on investing, funds, ETFs, and stock picking and is currently a non-executive director on a number of stockmarket-listed funds including Gresham House Energy Storage and the Aurora Investment Trust.
In what remains of his spare time he is a presiding justice on the Southampton magistrates bench.
-
UK to have highest inflation among advanced economies this year and next, says IMF
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says it expects inflation to remain high in the UK, while lowering economic growth forecasts for 2026.
-
Park Plaza: the perfect calm in Amsterdam
Enjoy a peaceful stay in the vibrant and largest city of the Netherlands - and why the Park Plaza, Vondelpark, could be the perfect stop for anyone looking for a bit of calm while still able to enjoy all that Amsterdam has to offer.
-
Global investors have overlooked some of China’s best growth stocks
Opinion Dale Nicholls, portfolio manager, Fidelity China Special Situations, highlights three Chinese businesses where he’d put his money
-
How Next defied the odds and positioned itself as a British high-street staple
Next rose from a near-death experience and now thrives as a high-street staple. What's driving its success – and should you invest in the retailer?
-
Alok Sama on AI and how to invest in the future of technology
Interview Alok Sama, the former president and chief financial officer of Masayoshi Son’s investment vehicle SoftBank Group International, explains AI’s potential
-
The private equity puzzle
Listed private equity trusts still trade at large discounts, despite sales that validate their valuations
-
Why investors should avoid market monomania
Opinion Today’s overwhelming focus on US markets leaves investors guessing about opportunities and risks elsewhere
-
Can Rachel Reeves save the City?
Opinion Chancellor Rachel Reeves is mulling a tax cut, which would be welcome – but it’s nowhere near enough, says Matthew Lynn
-
Pierre-Édouard Stérin wants to make France great again
Conservative billionaire Pierre-Édouard Stérin is seeking to lead a political and spiritual renaissance across the Channel. The planning looks meticulous
-
Global investors have overlooked the top innovators in emerging markets
Opinion Carlos Hardenberg, portfolio manager, Mobius Investment Trust, highlights three emerging market stocks where he’d put his money