Sydney-headquartered BetaShares has launched a pair of thematic equity ETFs providing exposure to companies at the forefront of innovation in digital and mobile payments and automotive technology.
The two new BetaShares ETPs have been listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.
The BetaShares Future of Payments ETF (IPAY AU) and BetaShares Electric Vehicles and Future Mobility ETF (DRIV AU) have been listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.
The funds each come with a management fee of 0.67%. Distributions are made on an annual basis.
Future of payments
The BetaShares Future of Payments ETF tracks the Nasdaq CTA Global Digital Payments Index which consists primarily of developed market stocks with market capitalizations above $500 million and average daily trading volumes greater than $1m.
The index harnesses the expertise of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), a standards and trade organization for the consumer technology industry in the United States, to calculate thematic intensity scores capturing each eligible company’s perceived degree of involvement within the digital payments space. Thematic intensity scores range from 0 to 1; only securities with scores equal to or exceeding 0.5 are eligible for inclusion.
The methodology targets the selection of 50 stocks with the highest theme-adjusted market capitalizations (derived by multiplying a firm’s thematic intensity score by its market capitalization). The index is reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced on a quarterly basis.
Stocks from the US account for more than three-quarters (79.2%) of the total index weight with the next-largest country exposure being the Netherlands at 4.8%. Companies classified to the IT services sector dominate with a combined 76.9% allocation while consumer finance stocks also play a notable role at 12.0%. Significant stock positions include Visa (6.9%), MasterCard (6.7%), PayPal (6.2%), American Express (6.0%), and Global Payments (5.0%).
Future of mobility
The BetaShares Electric Vehicles and Future Mobility ETF, meanwhile, is linked to the Solactive Future Mobility Index which consists of developed and emerging market stocks, excluding Chinese A-shares.
The methodology first constructs an eligible universe by selecting all stocks classified to the Future Transportation, Passenger Transportation and Future Trucks, and Smart Auto Components industries (considered pure-play industries). The largest five stocks classified to the Alternative Fuel, Battery Makers and Charging Infrastructure, Hydrogen Power, and Innovative Driving Technology industries are also added (non-pure-play).
The 50 largest stocks from the eligible universe are then selected to form the index. Constituents are weighted by float-adjusted market capitalization subject to caps of 8% and 3% for pure-play and non-pure-play firms respectively. Reconstitution and rebalancing occur quarterly.
Stocks from the US and China dominate with weights of approximately 45% and 20% respectively, while the index also provides notable exposure to companies listed in Germany (10.4%), Ireland (6.0%), Sweden (5.8%), and Japan (5.0%). Notable sector exposures include automobiles (41.5%), auto components (15.1%), semiconductors (12.2%), and electrical equipment (10.3%).
Tesla accounts for the largest single stock position at 10.6%, followed by Uber Technologies (6.9%), Aptiv (6.4%), NIO (5.6%), and Volkswagen (5.4%).
(All data as of the end of November)