The iBillionaire ETF has gone live on the NYSE Arca in what is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated exchange-traded fund launch of the year so far. Launched in partnership with Direxion Investments, the Direxion iBillionaire Index ETF (IBLN) enables ordinary, everyday investors to invest alongside some of the United States’ best known billionaire investors. The ETF is linked to the iBillionaire Index, an index which tracks the top stock picks of Wall Street titans such as Warren Buffett, George Soros, Carl Icahn, John Paulson, Ray Dalio, David Tepper, Edward Lampert and David Einhorn.

Direxion Investments, a leading provider of short and leveraged exchange-traded funds, has listed three new 2x leveraged ETFs on the NYSE Arca, offering exposure to the NYSE 7-10 Year Treasury Bond, S&P Mid Cap 400 and Russell 2000 indices. Brian Jacobs, President of Direxion Investments, said: “These three ETFs are part of our effort to build up our suite of 2x leveraged funds and provide as many options as possible for experienced traders to achieve risk-managed returns regardless of market conditions, or their preferred amount of leverage.”

Speaking at a conference earlier this week, Larry Fink, chief executive and chairman of BlackRock, the parent of iShares, argued that leveraged exchange-traded products represent “a structural problem that could blow up the whole industry one day”. He also asserted that iShares, the world’s largest provider of ETFs, “would never do a leveraged ETF”. His views, however, have not gone down well with all ETP industry participants, least of all with the providers of such products, which include major companies such as ProShares, Direxion and Boost ETP, a subsidiary of WisdomTree.

Direxion, a provider of short and leveraged exchange-traded funds, has announced the launch of two ETFs offering triple leveraged long and short exposure to gold. Listed on the NYSE Arca, the Direxion Daily Gold Bull 3X Shares (GLDL) and Direxion Daily Gold Bear 3X Shares (GLDS) seek to deliver 300 percent of the daily performance or 300 percent of the inverse of the daily performance, respectively, of Comex Gold Futures traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Direxion, a US-based provider of short and leveraged ETFs, has begun a marketing campaign designed to raise the profile of its 3x leveraged products among experienced, active traders. Dan O’Neill, Chief Executive Officer of Direxion, said: “For tactical, active traders who wish to employ leverage to maximize their exposure to a specific index, our 3x products offer the boldest way to trade. This campaign is intended to continue our dialogue with active traders and raise awareness of the extensive lineup of bull and bear strategies Direxion offers.”

Direxion, a leading provider of short and leveraged exchange-traded funds, has introduced two new products offering triple leveraged long and short exposure to a global portfolio of junior gold mining companies. Both products have been listed on the NYSE Arca and are linked to the Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners Index.

Gold mining stocks around the world have reacted to the unveiling of the revamped NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index, underlying index to the giant Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (GDX). With some $6.4 billion in assets under management, GDX is comfortably the world’s largest gold miner-focused exchange-traded fund (ETF) – the composition of its underlying index therefore matters to gold mining companies.

Some of the largest and most popular exchange-traded funds (ETFs) linked to the semiconductor industry are set for a makeover following a re-ranking of the index they track. Among the funds affected are the iShares PHLX Semiconductor ETF (SOXX), the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3x Shares ETF (SOXL) and the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3x Shares ETF (SOXS).

Boost, an independent provider of exchange-traded products, has countered criticism of leveraged and inverse exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from the US Federal Reserve. In a statement, the London-based firm, which specialises in leveraged and inverse products, said there was need for “more clarity and reasoned debate around the conclusions” of a recent Fed report entitled: Are Leveraged and Inverse ETFs the New Portfolio Insurers?

Global short and leveraged exchange-traded product (ETP) assets rose by $4.4bn in the first four months of 2013, to $48.5bn, according to data released by Boost ETP. The growth in assets is a reflection, in part, of the increased breadth and depth of products available, improved education and understanding, and a general move by investors towards more transparent, exchange-traded products.