As the second quarter comes to a close, Trillions reflects on some of the interesting trends and takeaways that have emerged so far this year -- and also explores a few things that may yet come to pass. Joel and Eric are joined by Todd Rosenbluth, ETF analyst for CFRA, and Sarah Ponczek, an ETF and markets reporter for Bloomberg News and co-host of the new What Goes Up podcast. Topics discussed by the group include fixed-income ETFs, sectors, new launches, ESG, marijuana, the non-transparent active ETF model, Michigan sports, Tom Hanks, and Family Ties. 

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Leverage and inverse ETFs are the bad boys of the ETF world - akin to Rated R movies or power tools. In the hands of a trained trader they can be helpful and precise. In the hands of a novice they can cut your hand off. 

We speak with Sylvia Jablonski of Direxion, the maker of 3x ETFs about her mission to “democratize leverage.” We also demystify these sometimes demonized products and breakdown how they work, what they hold, who should and shouldn’t use them and some of the products that see the most action.

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Do investors value freedom? And do they really know what they're buying with emerging markets ETFs? Yes to the first, says Perth Tolle, who just launched a new freedom-weighted ETF -- and no to the second. Tolle, who grew up in China before leaving to study abroad, wanted to create a way to invest that aligned with freedom, so she created her own quantative index that recently became the Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM). China, Saudi Arabia, and Russia are excluded; Taiwan, South Korea, and Chile are among those included and weighted according to Tolle's index. Eric and Joel interview Perth about her personal journey, what it takes to bring an ETF to market, and why she believes freedom is such a good investment thesis.

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If ETFs had a Mount Rushmore, QQQ (aka 'The Qs') would definitely be on it. This $72 billion legend of an ETF just turned 20 years old and is now the second most traded security in the world. But how much do investors really know about it? 

On this week’s Trillions Carolina Wilson of Bloomberg News sets out to the Midwest with microphone in hand to talk to those who built the original index and the ETF as well as tracked its changes over the years. Her journey lead to some interesting discoveries as well as a trip to the Chicago zoo, where she actually got a lion to roar. 

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These days about one in three bites of food you eat wouldn’t be possible without commercial bee pollination. And the economic value of insect pollination worldwide is estimated to be about $217 billion. But as important as bees have become for farming, there’s also increasing signs that bees are in trouble. In the decade-plus since the first cases of Colony Collapse Disorder were reported, bees are still dying in record numbers, and important questions remain unanswered. On this new miniseries, host Adam Allington and environment reporters David Schultz and Tiffany Stecker travel to all corners of the honeybee ecosystem from Washington, D.C., to the California almond fields, and orchards of the upper Midwest to find answers to these questions.

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While ETFs play an increasingly large role in U.S. financial markets, they're still in their infancy in Europe. The continent has regional markets, which has led to substantial fragmentation -- think a lot of products but not yet a lot of assets. Tom Psarofagis, an analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence who's now based in London, joins Eric and Joel to discuss how ETFs in Europe are "the same but different." 

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ETFs provide unique tax capabilities. And according to a recent article in Bloomberg Businessweek, some of those unique capabilities are being utilized to their fullest potential. While that might actually benefit the average investor, should society examine a deal this sweet more closely?

Zach Mider and Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News join Joel and Eric to discuss their reporting, the nuances of heartbeat trades, and the controversy surrounding the article.

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On this new show from Bloomberg, hosts Mike Regan and Sarah Ponczek speak with expert guests each week about the main themes influencing global markets. They explore everything from stocks to bonds to currencies and commodities, and how each asset class affects trading in the others. Whether you’re a financial professional or just a curious retirement saver, What Goes Up keeps you apprised of the latest buzz on Wall Street and what the wildest movements in markets will mean for your investments.

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The market for exchange-traded funds is getting nasty. Especially for new ETFs. Carving out a niche for one is becoming increasingly difficult.

There are already more than 2,000 exchange-traded products out there and the market has started to feel saturated. Only about 1 percent of new ETF proposals actually ever make it to market. And of that 1 percent that do, 10 of them flop when they get there for every one that takes off. A great concept, a clever ticker symbol and a sharp pitch -- something that’s both clear and powerful -- are crucial. So too is lining up seed capital. An ETF’s chance of success increases markedly if it comes with some initial money behind it.

So, given this trend in the market, we dedicated this episode of Trillions to a competition in the Bloomberg newsroom -- a Shark Tank-esque sort of showdown -- to see who could come up with the best pitch for a new ETF.

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After a fairly long period of peace in the ETF Fee War, an unprecedented outbreak occurred, which saw about 10 different issuers reducing or undercutting costs on a few dozen products, which included the first zero and negative fee ETFs. 

Smaller issuers such as SoFi and Salt have participated alongside market leaders BlackRock, Vanguard and State Street. Joel and Eric are joined by Rachel Evans of Bloomberg News for a dive into this two week fee cutting frenzy to break down what it means for investors and the industry. 

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