Join us for an insightful episode as we dive into the fascinating world of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) with a true industry veteran, Will Rhind. With over two decades of experience in the ETF arena, Will has carved a unique path by focusing on providing investors with high-conviction stock positions through innovative and disruptive ETF investments.GraniteShares, Will's brainchild, boasts a diverse ETF suite covering everything from commodities to income, equities, and leveraged single stocks. In this episode, we have the privilege of delving into the world of these disruptive single stock ETFs, including red-hot names like Nvidia, Tesla, Meta, and Apple.Will expertly articulates the case for single stock ETFs, and conviction investing. He explores the remarkable demand surge witnessed in recent months, particularly with earnings season on the horizon, and offers insightful glimpses into what the future may hold for these investment vehicles.Our guest, Will Rhind, isn't just a seasoned professional; he's the Founder & CEO of GraniteShares, managing over $1.7 billion in total assets under management. His impressive journey includes a stint as a Principal at iShares and as a key member of the original European ETF team. Notably, he also spearheaded ETF Securities in the U.S. and helmed the world's largest commodities fund, the SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD). Find more information at graniteshares.com
Deeper Dive: Insights from the Full Conversation
Beyond the headline strategy, the full conversation between Brad and Will Rhind covered several additional themes worth highlighting for advisors and investors.
On Process and Philosophy
So in the, in the simplest form, it's an ETF, just like any other and all leverage ETFs work the same. So they're typically providing exposure via swaps, which is a derivative contract that you procure from an investment bank and investment for those providing with the leverage and via this stock contract to the funds. So collateral, you have margin and you have a derivative contract that gives you that exposure. And all these funds rebalance at the end of each day.
I'm Brad Roth, Chief Investment Officer of Thor Financial Technologies, and portfolio manager of THLV, the Thor Low Volatility ETF. Behind the Ticker, uncovers the inner workings of the ETF industry. We will interview portfolio managers and ETF service providers to dive deep into their work lives and their businesses. We will learn the inner workings of their strategies and what drives them as they continue to grow their company. Many of these individuals are entrepreneurs, and will have unique and compelling insights to share as much goes on behind the Ticker.
Market Context and Positioning
Today we have Will Rind, he's the founder and CEO of Granite Shares. He is a very long and tenured career in the ETF business spanning over 20 years. He's worked on products like GLD, and went out and launched his own firm Granite Shares in 2017. They have grown quite significantly, and today we're going to talk about their single stock levered ETF products with names like Tesla, Coinbase, and the video distribution and asset growth on these products has been very hot, so I think this conversation is very timely and also very interesting to get Will's perspective on the ETF space as a whole.
In other words, the client never buys from us directly. What we see is the net effect of all of the buys, all of the sales in the market on a given day and the residual comes to us in the formula in order to create more shares or in order to cancel or redeem shares. So it's difficult, but I think it has to be a combination of the both. I mean, I looked yesterday, an NVDL was the best performing TF of the year so far, so it's done incredibly well.
So, anyway, think of Europe, we think of bonds, entity, but, is obviously when it comes to, to the, I mean, I saw a flow chart of far market versus the European market, and it is about as complex as it can get over there, comparison. I mean, don't get me wrong, people love UTS, it's just, there are just, there are just some fundamental challenges, which mean that the U.S. has accelerated, you know, far faster than anything in Europe, and, and, you know, some people say that Europe's like five years behind whether you exist, and it's probably one way or another.
Notable Insights
"That's why we target the stated leverage factor we call it, but that's why you'll see there's a amount of times in the case of a lot of funds is different."
Key Takeaways
- His impressive journey includes a stint as a Principal at iShares and as a key member of the original European ETF team.
- The conversation explores important themes in income investing relevant to today's advisor landscape.
- The conversation explores important themes in crypto & digital assets relevant to today's advisor landscape.
What This Means for Advisors
For financial advisors evaluating options for client portfolios, this conversation with Will Rhind highlights important considerations around crypto & digital assets. Understanding the strategy behind each fund—not just the ticker—helps advisors make more informed allocation decisions and better communicate the rationale to clients.
The themes of crypto & digital assets and income investing discussed in this episode are particularly relevant in the current market environment, where advisors are increasingly looking for differentiated solutions that go beyond traditional benchmarks.
Listen to the Full Episode
This article is based on an episode of Behind the Ticker, hosted by Brad Roth, Founder and CIO of THOR Financial Technologies. For the full conversation with Will Rhind, including additional nuances and details, listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or watch on YouTube.