Mike Venuto

Mike Venuto is the co-founder and CEO of Tidal Financial Group, one of the premier white label ETF platforms in the industry. Tidal currently services 162 funds and handles everything from compliance and regulatory filings to creative marketing and active portfolio management. Mike also serves as CIO and is personally involved in structuring and actively managing several funds, including Block (the blockchain-focused ETF) and Nancy and Crews. On this return visit to Behind the Ticker, Mike and Brad cover the state of the ETF industry, what's launching, what's coming next, and some of the regulatory and structural trends that are reshaping the business.

Inside Tidal's 162-Fund Platform

Mike describes Tidal as a platform that can help you launch, grow, and operate an ETF. But the scope goes well beyond basic white labeling. Beyond the compliance and regulatory work, Tidal has a 15-person investment committee that meets every Monday to cover both active and passive strategies across their platform. Mike personally manages several funds, including YMAX, the fund-of-funds for the YieldMax suite, which has been one of the biggest distribution stories in the ETF industry.

On the active management side, Mike describes how Block trades: the fund has specific investment committee meetings, and positions are built and managed through a systematic process with a team including Dan Weiskopf. Crews, another actively managed fund, follows a similar governance structure. Mike emphasizes that Tidal's active management capabilities distinguish them from white label platforms that only handle administrative and compliance functions.

The Three Types of Clients Driving ETF Growth

Mike identifies three major categories of clients coming to Tidal. The first is individual managers with track records who want to put their strategy into an ETF wrapper. These are the classic white label clients: someone running a successful SMA or model portfolio who wants the distribution and tax efficiency advantages of the ETF structure.

The second category is existing ETF issuers building out product suites. Mike highlights SP Funds as a standout example. When SP Funds came to Tidal, they had $80 million and one Sharia-compliant fund. In just under four years, they've grown to four ETFs plus mutual funds totaling roughly $750 million. The strategy was to keep building components so that investors who want Sharia-compliant portfolios have all the pieces they need. Mike calls this the "product to business" evolution and sees it as one of the most powerful growth patterns in the ETF industry.

The third category is conversions: managers moving strategies from SMAs, limited partnerships, or mutual funds into the ETF structure. Mike is direct about the tax advantage, saying he can guarantee (and he notes the SEC can knock him for this) that if you're a taxable investor choosing between the same strategy in a mutual fund versus an ETF, you'll be more tax efficient in the ETF 94-99% of the time. That structural reality is driving a massive wave of conversions.

What's Next: Single Stocks, Tax Strategies, and Crypto

Brad asked what the next wave of ETF innovation looks like. Mike's view is that single stock products aren't done. Beyond leveraged and inverse products, he sees at least 20 more things that can be done with individual names. There are also concentrated and micro-basket products, like RoundHill's Magnificent Seven ETF, that give investors targeted exposure to specific themes with a handful of names.

Mike is particularly interested in tax-advantaged ETF strategies, pointing to Wes Gray's work at Alpha Architect with BOXX as something that could become a huge mega trend. Given the likelihood of taxes increasing, strategies that provide additional tax efficiency within the already tax-efficient ETF wrapper could see enormous demand. He also expects significantly more options, derivatives, and futures-based products, noting that regulatory changes in recent years have opened doors that were previously closed. Products like the managed futures ETF Brad discussed with Jerry Parker wouldn't have been possible four years ago.

On the private credit question, Mike is more cautious. While there's industry buzz about putting private credit into ETFs, he questions whether truly illiquid assets can work in a daily-liquidity vehicle. The ETF structure works brilliantly for liquid strategies, but forcing illiquid assets into a liquid wrapper creates potential problems that the industry hasn't fully thought through.

Key Takeaways

• Tidal Financial Group services 162 ETFs with a full-service platform spanning compliance, portfolio management, marketing, and active fund management including a 15-person investment committee.
• SP Funds grew from $80M and one product to $750M across four ETFs and mutual funds in under four years by building a complete Sharia-compliant product suite through Tidal.
• Mike identifies three client categories driving growth: individual managers going to ETF, existing issuers building suites, and conversions from SMAs, LPs, and mutual funds.
• The next wave includes more single stock innovation (20+ things beyond leverage/inverse), concentrated micro-baskets, tax-advantaged strategies (like BOXX), and options/derivatives-based products enabled by recent regulatory changes.
• Mike cautions that private credit in ETFs raises genuine liquidity questions that the industry hasn't fully resolved. Not everything belongs in a daily-liquidity wrapper.

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