Last week saw a total of 14 launches, eight of which were ETFs offering leveraged and inverse exposure to individual stocks.

Among the other ETF rollouts during the week were three actively managed ETFs from ETF newcomer Matthews Asia. The Matthews Emerging Markets Equity Active ETF (MEM), Matthews Asia Innovators Active ETF (MINV) and the Matthews China Active ETF (MCH) all launched on Thursday on the NYSE Arca with expense ratios of 0.79%.

The funds evaluate companies based on their fundamental characteristics in order to select those most likely to exhibit sustainable growth.

MEM targets emerging markets at the global level, while MINV is a pan-Asian fund that covers developed, emerging and frontier markets, with a focus on science- and technology-related companies. MCH targets China’s markets, including Hong Kong and Macau, and can take into account ESG criteria when selecting its holdings.

Tuesday saw the launch of the actively managed RiverNorth Enhanced Pre-Merger SPAC ETF (SPCZ) by RiverNorth Capital Management and TrueMark Investments; it lists on the NYSE Arca with an expense ratio of 0.89%. The fund invests in precombination special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs). RiverNorth is the subadviser to the fund, while TrueMark is the adviser.

"SPCZ is the first pre-merger SPAC ETF to opportunistically deploy leverage while giving investors access to RiverNorth’s trading strategies and programs that seek to derive value from buying and selling SPAC securities including units, common shares, and warrants," said TrueMark CEO Mike Loukas in a press release.

Also on Tuesday, the AAM Transformers ETF (TRFM) made its debut on the NYSE Arca with an expense ratio of 0.49%. The fund tracks an index of U.S.-listed equities of companies that are likely to benefit from paradigm shifts in consumer behavior and technological innovation such as the rise of autonomous vehicle technology; the shift to online retail from brick-and-mortar stores; improved cellular data technology; and improvements in green energy technology.

Completed Closures

Also during the week, several funds shut down. Monday was the last day of trading for the AVDR US LargeCap ESG ETF (AVDG) and the AVDR US LargeCap Leading ETF (AVDR). Both funds launched at the end of 2020 but failed to gather significant assets.

On Friday, another trio of ETFs from different issuers saw their last day of trading. The affected funds include the AWTM Ultra-Short Duration Enhanced Income ETF (AWTM), the ETFMG Real Estate Tech ETF (HHH) and the ETFMG Prime 2x Daily Inverse Junior Silver Miners ETF (SINV).