‘EMQQ’ Founder Launches India Tech ETF

Kevin Carter’s latest offering focuses on internet and e-commerce in India.

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Kevin Carter’s latest ETF is targeting India’s growing online population, making it the second to target the country’s e-commerce industry. 

The India Internet & Ecommerce ETF (INQQ) debuted on the NYSE Arca Wednesday, charging the same 0.86% expense ratio as its sister funds, the Emerging Markets Internet & Ecommerce ETF (EMQQ) and the FMQQ The Next Frontier Internet & Ecommerce ETF (FMQQ)

INQQ follows a custom index tracking Indian companies that generate the majority of their revenues from internet and e-commerce activity, along with having at least $200 million in market capitalization and other liquidity measures in place. 

In a statement, Carter said India’s digital adoption is among the fastest in the emerging market space due to the country’s plan introduced in 2015 to expand internet access across its rural areas. 

“You can think of this opportunity as ‘the next billion’ as India’s population gets affordable access to the internet for the first time via smartphones,” he said. 

INQQ is the second ETF on the U.S. market targeting this theme, with the VanEck Digital India ETF (DGIN) being the first to launch, in mid-February. While DGIN has returned 5% since launch, it has garnered just $1.8 million in assets. 

INQQ’s index differs slightly from DGIN by having a cap of 8% weighting for any security in the index, and specifically requires the companies to be generating that revenue in India. Those changes mean INQQ and DGIN only share Reliance Industries and Info Edge India between their top 10 holdings, with those stocks representing 16% of INQQ and 12.79% of DGIN’s respective portfolios. 
 

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Dan Mika is a reporter for etf.com. He has previously covered business for the Ames Tribune and Cedar Rapids Gazette in Iowa, and BizWest Media in Fort Collins, Colorado. Dan holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Truman State University.