Ben Strack

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 <li>The fund’s largest competitor is Roundhill Investments’ Metaverse ETF (METV), which launched last June and has more than $700 million in assets</li>
 <li>Fund groups First Trust, Fidelity Investments and Global X have filed for similar offerings</li>
 </ul>
 
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ProShares, the asset manager that launched the first bitcoin futures ETF in the US, now has a metaverse ETF as more issuers seek to enter the market segment.



The company, which <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/first-bitcoin-futures-etf-nears-1b-on-first-day-of-trading/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">debuted its Bitcoin Strategy ETF</a> (BITO) in October, had <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/proshares-files-for-metaverse-etf/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">first revealed plans</a> for its metaverse-focused offering in December. 



The ProShares Metaverse ETF (VERS) has begun trading on the NYSE Arca, the company announced Thursday. The fund carries an expense ratio of 58 basis points.



“The metaverse may be as impactful on society as the arrival of the internet or the mobile phone, and the investment opportunity has the potential to be just as compelling,” ProShares CEO Michael Sapir said in a statement.



The ETF tracks the Solactive Metaverse Theme Index, which comprises 40 companies. It includes device makers and data processors, as well as social media and gaming platforms.



Apple is the ETF’s top holding, at about 8%, followed by Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) and NVIDIA.



“In the not-too-distant future, anything from a work meeting to time with family could take place in the metaverse, and VERS provides investors an easy way to access the potential growth,” said Scott Helfstein, ProShares’ executive director of thematic investing.



VERS joins Roundhill Investments’ Metaverse ETF (METV); Exchange Traded Concepts’ Fount Metaverse ETF (MTVR); and <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/new-metaverse-etf-launches/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Subversive Capital’s Metaverse ETF</a> (PUNK). The latter offering, unlike its competitors, includes a short position to Facebook parent company Meta Platforms.



METV launched last June and has grown to $726 million in assets, according to Roundhill’s website. MTVR and PUNK, which launched in October and January, respectively, have roughly $10 million in combined assets.



Lara Crigger, managing editor of ETF Trends and ETF Database, said in January the metaverse is “a little thin on the ground when it comes to investability.”



The Roundhill fund has returned -30% year to date, as of March 15, according to FactSet data.



More metaverse ETFs are on the way. Fund groups <a href="https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001364608/000144554621006106/etf2_485a.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">First Trust</a>, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/fidelity-plots-crypto-etfs/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fidelity Investments</a> and <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/global-x-latest-etf-issuer-to-test-out-the-metaverse/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global X</a> have all filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch funds focused on the space.



ProShares manages roughly $60 billion in assets across about 140 ETFs in the US, according to ETF.com data.



Since BITO’s October launch, during which it gathered about $1 billion in its first day of trading, the fund’s inflows have stalled.



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