Kirsten Chang

Kirsten Chang spent over a decade at CNBC, first producing Squawk Box and then working on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with Bob Pisani, helping launch the weekly show ETF Edge. She attended the Exchange conference every year with Bob, sitting down with ETF CEOs and thought leaders. When she decided to move back to the West Coast, Tom Lydon, Dave Nadig, and Todd Rosenbluth at VettaFi recruited her to develop her own voice covering the industry. She now writes weekly articles on ETF trends, moderates webcasts, and covers conference content for VettaFi.

On this episode of Behind the Ticker, Kirsten previews the Exchange ETF conference in Las Vegas. It's the big annual gathering with over 1,600 registrants, 700+ advisors, and a packed agenda covering everything from AI to fixed income to the intersection of sports betting and investing.

What's on the Agenda

The conference runs March 23-26 in Las Vegas, having moved from its previous home in Miami. The content lineup reflects where the industry is focused. David Kelly, chief global strategist at JP Morgan, headlines alongside John Mayer of JP Morgan. Ian Bremmer closes things out making sense of trade wars, tariffs, and geopolitics. Rob Arnott of Research Affiliates (a recent Behind the Ticker guest) joins an international equity panel. Bloomberg's Eric Balchunas leads the crypto discussion. Bond blocks and FM Investments cover fixed income innovation, which is timely after a record year for fixed income ETF flows.

The hot-button topics this year include private credit ETFs, hedge fund-led multi-asset ETFs, and actively managed strategies, which have been growing at an explosive rate in both equity and fixed income. With the Federal Reserve keeping markets guessing on rate cuts, fixed income innovation is especially relevant.

Standout Sessions

Kirsten highlighted several sessions that go beyond traditional ETF content. "Money Lines and Markets" pairs Mike Durso from Shore Haven with Mike Palm of Circus Sports to draw parallels between sports betting analytics and investing. The thesis: the analytical framework used to price sports bets has a lot in common with how markets price risk. Kyle, who founded Bread and has a massive social media following, talks about the convergence of social media, AI, and markets. Practice management sessions cover the psychology of money, speech coaching for advisors, and retirement planning. Most sessions offer CE credits, giving advisors a practical reason to attend every session rather than heading to the casino.

Beyond the Conference Floor

The non-content programming leans into the Vegas setting. A Susan G. Komen "Putt for Pink" mini golf setup replaces the traditional 5K run, with six putting greens spread throughout the campus for charitable donations. State Street sponsors a basketball hoop area for March Madness, which is in full swing during the conference. The social events are designed to create networking opportunities that feel natural rather than forced. Brad joked about keeping people out of the sports books and in the sessions. Kirsten conceded Sunday might be tough to pull people away from the screens with March Madness games running all day.

VettaFi's Ecosystem

VettaFi is more than a conference company. They're an index provider, a data company tracking flows and performance across over 4,000 ETFs, and a digital distribution platform that runs regular webcasts bridging the gap between advisors and issuers. The data and trends that emerge from Exchange tend to set the agenda for advisor and investor interest for the rest of the year. Kirsten noted that whatever resonated at the conference historically became the dominant theme in the months that followed.

Advisors can register for a significant discount, and in some cases free through VettaFi webcast participation codes. The conference has been running for more than a decade and continues to grow. For Kirsten, making the jump from covering it as a CNBC producer to being on the inside organizing content has been "wild and wonderful." The themes that emerge from Exchange, whether it's AI, private credit, or active management, tend to shape the conversation for the rest of the year.

Key Takeaways

• The Exchange ETF conference runs March 23-26 in Las Vegas with 1,600+ registrants and 700+ advisors. Moved from Miami to Vegas for the first time.
• Key speakers include David Kelly (JP Morgan), Ian Bremmer (geopolitics), Rob Arnott (Research Affiliates), Eric Balchunas (Bloomberg crypto), and practice management sessions with CE credits.
• Hot topics: private credit ETFs, hedge fund multi-asset ETFs, actively managed strategies, fixed income innovation after a record flow year.
• VettaFi is an index provider, data company, and digital distribution platform. Exchange is one piece of a larger ecosystem connecting 4,000+ ETFs to advisors.
• Kirsten Chang spent a decade at CNBC producing Squawk Box and ETF Edge on the NYSE floor before joining VettaFi to write and moderate on ETF trends.

Listen to the full conversation on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube.