BMO debuts new technology funds that will be managed by Cathie Wood's ARK

Commuters On Bay Street As Canadian Stocks Mixed

Bank of Montreal Investments has partnered with high-profile U.S. fund manager Cathie Wood to create a series of technology funds that will be managed by Wood’s ARK Investment Management.

The new funds — which include three ETFs and three mutual funds — will invest in sectors including genomics, fintech innovation, the internet of things and big data, and will be collectively known as the BMO ARK Funds, according to a press releasing announcing the tie-up.

“Based on the strength and expertise of the ARK team, these three new BMO ARK funds are expertly positioned to benefit from important long-term trends in the market,” said Kevin Gopaul, president of ETFs at BMO Global Asset Management.

Cathie Wood became an investing superstar in the U.S. when her ARK Innovation ETF, which focuses on investing in the equities of so-called “disruptive” innovation companies, recorded substantial gains during the pandemic. The actively managed ETF’s fortunes, however, have turned as the tech boom has receded.

Among ARK’s top holdings, according to Bloomberg, are Tesla Inc., Zoom Video Communications Inc. and Shopify Inc., all of which have experienced significant share price declines this year. Tesla, for example, is down 48 per cent while Shopify has fallen 73 per cent in 2022.

As of Nov. 16, the ARK Innovation EFT has assets of US$8.03 billion. ARK Investment Management had assets under management of US$23.1 billion as of Sept. 30, 2022, according to the BMO press release.

• TD settles lawsuit over COVID-19 travel insurance claims

• Canadian banks raise prime rate to 5.95% after Bank of Canada hike

• HSBC Bank Canada posts record profit in Q3 amid speculation over potential suitors

Thee three BMO/ARK ETFs are:

• The BMO ARK Genomic Revolution Fund will invest in companies working in the areas of targeted therapeutics, bioinformatics, molecular diagnostics, stem cells and agricultural biology;

• The BMO ARK Innovation Fund will invest in companies working in the areas associated with fintech innovation, genomics, industrial innovation and next-generation internet innovation;

• The BMO ARK Next Generation Internet Fund will invest mostly in companies focused on cloud technology,internet-based products and services, new payment methods, big data, the internet of things and social distribution and media.

Each of the new BMO ETFs has a management fee of 0.75 per cent and will be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

BMO mutual funds are managed by BMO Investments, the investment fund entity of Bank of Montreal.

• Email: gmvsuhanic@postmedia.com | Twitter: gsuhanic