BlackRock and Vanguard collectively own about 15% of every US company, but are they voting their shares in a way that aligns with investors in their funds? One new exchange-traded fund company, Strive Asset Management, says they aren’t, claiming they’ve gone against their fiduciary duty by becoming too “woke” and forming an “ideological cartel.” Now it has plans to offer alternatives.
We talk to Vivek Ramaswamy and Anson Frericks, co-founders of Strive. They plan to launch ETFs similar to those of BlackRock and Vanguard, but promise to keep politics and ESG concerns out of their voting. They discuss criticisms of ESG investing, stakeholder vs. shareholder capitalism and what Ramaswamy calls “excellence capitalism.” They also talk about how Strive will compete against the two biggest asset managers on the planet, and its noteworthy backers—including Peter Theil and Bill Ackman. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The ESG Backlash

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 in recent years. Exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, let you invest in everything from the stock market to gold like never before. This biweekly podcast will demystify them—and delight you in the process.

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The issuer of an exchange-traded fund has one main goal, and that’s to get assets—but being recognized is nice, too. Just like the Oscars, the ETF industry has its own awards show, held by ETF.com every April in New York City. Categories include ETF of the Year, Issuer of the Year, Best New Fixed Income ETF and even a Lifetime Achievement Award. Now that the tenth annual ETF awards ceremony is in the history books, we can tell you that—just like the Academy Awards—there were some notable winners as well as a few surprises. 
Om this episode, Joel and Eric look through a number of winners with ETF.com's editor-in-chief Kristin Myers and finance reporter Lucy Brewster.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

And the Winner Is...

The music industry took a huge revenue hit when the MP3 came out about twenty years ago but has since found ways to make money. And now there’s an ETF for that too. 
On this episode of Trillions, we speak with David Schulhof, founder and CEO of the MUSQ Global Music Industry ETF, about the stocks in the ETFs as well as the growth of the music industry which includes songs, platforms, concerts and the Taylor Swift economy. We also discuss his career in the music industry and whether music has gotten better or worse. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This ETF Will Be Music to Your Ears

After 17 years, the Bank of Japan finally scrapped the world’s last negative interest policy. The central bank also announced it will cease buying exchange-traded funds, an effort originally intended to revitalize the corporate sector and pump cash into the economy. So what becomes of its $475 billion ETF hoard? That’s to be determined, but just as Japan is changing course, China’s so-called “national team” has begun purchasing a handful of key Chinese ETFs.
On this episode, Eric and Joel are joined by Bloomberg Intelligence’s Rebecca Sin, a Hong Kong-based ETF analyst and host of the forthcoming podcast Tiger Money. They discuss what might come next for Japan, why China is following a similar playbook and what it all means for investors and the global economy.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Central Banks Love ETFs

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Listen Now: The Big Take

Worry? What worries? As the market hits new all-time highs, investors are “comfortably bullish,” according to research by Bloomberg Intelligence. They’re also bullish on exchange-traded funds, according to BI’s first-ever ETF survey. What if anything could derail this state of optimism? And how is the current enthusiasm different from the meme-stock euphoria and previous all-time highs of 2021?
On this episode of Trillions, Eric Balchunas and Joel Weber speak with Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst Athanasios Psarofagis about his new greed/fear index, which uses several ETF metrics. They also comb through the survey’s findings, which show a growing interest in ETFs and active management. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The ESG Backlash

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