Joel, Eric and Athanasios Psarofagis crack open the mailbag to answer some listener questions about ETFs.

Joel, Eric and Athanasios Psarofagis crack open the mailbag to answer some listener questions about ETFs.

Money goes where it’s treated best. That simple truth is a big reason why more and more money (trillions, in fact) flows into a powerful, low-cost tool that’s quietly transformed investing. Exchange-traded funds let you invest in everything from the stock market to gold like never before. This biweekly podcast will demystify them—and hopefully delight you in the process.

Money goes where it&rsquo;s treated best. That simple truth is a big reason why more and more money (trillions, in fact) flows into a powerful, low-cost tool that&rsquo;s quietly transformed investing. Exchange-traded funds let you invest in everything from the stock market to gold like never before. This biweekly podcast will demystify them&mdash;and hopefully delight you in the process.

Joel Weber and Eric Balchunas demystify the world of exchange-traded funds, or ETFs.

Trillions

The 2025 ETF Mailbag

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Cathie Wood is best known for exchange-traded funds, especially her flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK). But ARK also runs a less familiar product: the ARK Venture Fund (ARKVX), an interval fund that holds stakes in private companies such as SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic—firms expected to make a splash when they go public, perhaps as soon as this year. The fund has quietly become one of the few active strategies to outperform the Nasdaq 100, yet it still manages only about $500 million in assets and comes with caveats typical of interval funds (namely illiquidity).

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Wood, Brett Winton and Charles Roberts—the fund’s three portfolio managers—about how they decide which private companies to invest in, how they value assets that don’t trade publicly and whether some of these holdings could eventually find their way into ARK’s ETFs. They also discuss the structural challenges of gaining private-market exposure through ETFs and how issuers and investors are navigating those limits.

Cathie Wood is best known for exchange-traded funds, especially her flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK). But ARK also runs a less familiar product: the ARK Venture Fund (ARKVX), an interval fund that holds stakes in private companies such as SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic&mdash;firms expected to make a splash when they go public, perhaps as soon as this year. The fund has quietly become one of the few active strategies to outperform the Nasdaq 100, yet it still manages only about $500 million in assets and comes with caveats typical of interval funds (namely illiquidity).
On this episode of&nbsp;Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Wood, Brett Winton and Charles Roberts&mdash;the fund&rsquo;s three portfolio managers&mdash;about how they decide which private companies to invest in, how they value assets that don&rsquo;t trade publicly and whether some of these holdings could eventually find their way into ARK&rsquo;s ETFs. They also discuss the structural challenges of gaining private-market exposure through ETFs and how issuers and investors are navigating those limits.

How to Invest in Future Unicorn IPOs

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Venezuela bonds were up 100% even before the US ousted President Nicolás Maduro. Then they went up another 30%. And one actively-managed exchange-traded fund was positioned perfectly after buying the bonds in 2025. 

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Jim Craige, portfolio manager of the Virtus Stone Harbor Emerging Markets High Yield Bond ETF ($VEMY), and Damian Sassower, who oversees emerging markets fixed income for Bloomberg Intelligence. They discuss why Venezuela bonds are surging, how Stone Harbor gained exposure, Craig's overall investing strategy, and how a restructuring might work. They also take a brief tour of VEMY’s other holdings, including countries such as Lebanon and Ecuador that have also seen increased returns.

Venezuela bonds were up 100% even before the US ousted President Nicol&aacute;s Maduro. Then they went up another 30%. And one actively-managed exchange-traded fund was positioned perfectly after buying the bonds in 2025. On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Jim Craige, portfolio manager of the Virtus Stone Harbor Emerging Markets High Yield Bond ETF ($VEMY), and Damian Sassower, who oversees emerging markets fixed income for Bloomberg Intelligence. They discuss why Venezuela bonds are surging, how Stone Harbor gained exposure, Craig's overall investing strategy, and how a restructuring might work. They also take a brief tour of VEMY&rsquo;s other holdings, including countries such as Lebanon and Ecuador that have also seen increased returns.

The Venezuela Factor: Why High-Yield, Emerging-Market Debt Is Having a Moment

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To kick off the new year, Bloomberg Intelligence has its annual list of ETFs for your stocking-shaped portfolio. While these aren't buy or sell market predictions, the funds are worthy of your watchlist as they may help investors tap into or navigate important themes. And you never know, a few of them could even have a breakout moment you'll find yourself humble-bragging about.

On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber are joined by Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Athanasios Psarofagis and James Seyffart, who helped write the team's annual report. The episode features 16 ETFs, including the tickers BINC, XOVR, MSOS, BUFB, UFOD, OTGL, VXUS, SBIL, RSST, SPYM, BOXX, GRFT, ITB, PXUI, PCLN and LRND.

To kick off the new year, Bloomberg Intelligence has its annual list of ETFs for your stocking-shaped portfolio. While these aren't buy or sell market predictions, the funds are worthy of your watchlist as they may help investors tap into or navigate important themes. And you never know, a few of them could even have a breakout moment you'll find yourself humble-bragging about.
On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber are joined by Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Athanasios Psarofagis and James Seyffart, who helped write the team's annual report. The episode features 16 ETFs, including the tickers BINC, XOVR, MSOS, BUFB, UFOD, OTGL, VXUS, SBIL, RSST, SPYM, BOXX, GRFT, ITB, PXUI, PCLN and LRND.

ETFs to Watch in 2026

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The 2025 ETF Mailbag

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