ETF NEWS - ULTUMUS

Blackrock Thematic

Written by Bernie Thurston | 5 June 2019

BlackRock is bulking up its thematic suite, listing two new funds targeting popular well-performing niches, both of which track FactSet indexes.


  • iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF (IHAK)
  • iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA)

IHAK, to us, looks basically like a global tech ETF but with some tampering around the edges and a steep fee. IHAK will invest in global companies judged by FactSet to be exposed to cybersecurity. The companies it chooses, which will overwhelmingly come from the tech sector, will be selected with an eye to revenue. 

The fund will rebalance twice a year and reconstituted annually. While the companies can be global, 34 out of 39 at the time of writing are based in the US, the prospectus indicates. IHAK charges 0.47%.

IDNA, from what we can tell, is just a global biotech ETF, but with a try-hard fund name and - again - a steep fee. IDNA begins by using RBICS definitions of the biopharma and healthcare sectors. It then invests in the biggest companies by market cap that FactSet judges to be involved in genomics and immunology. 

The weights of each company are capped at 4%, giving the fund something similar to the equal weight effect of State Street’s $4 billion biotech ETF XBI. The fund rebalances annually and charges 0.47%.