Betashares to launch ‘rising stars of Nasdaq’ ETF

ETF specialist fund manager Betashares is set to add to its popular Nasdaq investment offering, announcing the prospective launch of two new Nasdaq ETFs on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) as interest in global equities continues to grow.

Among the new funds is the Betashares Nasdaq Next Gen 100 ETF (JNDQ). The JNDQ will target “rising stars” of the tech-oriented index, investing in the 100 largest (by market cap) Nasdaq-listed non-financial companies outside of the Nasdaq-100 Index.

“These companies are at a relatively early stage of their development,” Betashares said, “with the potential to become tomorrow’s leaders in a range of sectors including technology, healthcare and industrials”.

For instance, several market-dominating companies of today, including Tesla, Netflix and Docusign have “graduated” from the Nasdaq Next Generation 100 Index to the Nasdaq-100 over the past 15 years, Betashares noted.

The second fund, the Betashares Nasdaq 100 Equal Weight ETF (QNDQ), provides a more balanced offering, investing in an equally weighted portfolio of Nasdaq 100 companies.

The fund boasts “significant diversification benefits and lower stock and sector concentration risk,” Betashares said.

The two new funds are expected to begin trading on the ASX in February, subject to regulatory approvals.

Betashares chief executive Alex Vynokur said the two new funds provide complementary exposures to Betashares’ existing Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ).

“As Australia’s home of the Nasdaq 100 ETF, we’re proud to expand the universe of investment solutions providing exposure to some of the world’s most innovative companies,” he said.

In the three years to the end of January 2024, Betashare’s Nasdaq 100 ETF fund has returned 15.69%, after fees, to investors.

Vynokur added: “We continue to see strong adoption of international equities ETFs within investor portfolios, as they better recognise the importance of diversification across asset classes and investment styles.”