Roundhill Launches Space-Themed ETF With ‘MARS’ Ticker

Roundhill Investments, the ETF issuer known for thematic strategies, launched a new space-focused exchange-traded fund on Thursday.

The Roundhill Space & Technology ETF (MARS) comes with a 0.75% expense ratio and aims to capture the growth of the space economy.

The fund will invest in companies that derive at least half of their revenue or profits from activities tied to space infrastructure and technology. That includes firms involved in rocket launches, satellites, aerospace systems with direct space missions, and communications networks that rely on space-based assets.

The strategy also extends into adjacent technologies that support the space ecosystem, including semiconductors, network infrastructure, advanced military technology, AI services and software.

At launch, the ETF holds 23 companies. Its largest positions include Rocket Lab and AST SpaceMobile, each at roughly 10%, followed by EchoStar at 9%, Planet Labs at 5.6% and Globalstar at 5.5%.

Growing Attention

The space sector has attracted growing investor attention in recent years as satellite networks, launch services and space-based communications have become increasingly important parts of the global economy. 

Companies like Rocket Lab build rockets that deliver payloads into orbit, while firms such as AST SpaceMobile are developing satellite networks designed to connect directly to smartphones on Earth.

A number of these companies have also become favorites among retail investors hoping to get exposure to what they see as the next major frontier of technological development.

Interest in the sector could grow even further if SpaceX, Elon Musk’s private space company, eventually goes public. The firm has been widely rumored to be preparing for an IPO that could rank among the largest ever. 

For now, however, public market investors can only access the company indirectly, and attempts by some ETFs to hold private shares have highlighted the structural challenges of putting illiquid assets inside open-end funds.

But even without SpaceX, investors already have a few ways to gain exposure to the theme.

Space-Related ETFs

The Procure Space ETF (UFO), which tracks an index, is the largest dedicated space ETF with about $369 million in assets. Its holdings include companies such as Planet Labs, MDA Space, Viasat and AST SpaceMobile.

Two other funds take a broader approach. The ARK Space & Defense Innovation ETF (ARKX), with roughly $730 million in assets, mixes space companies with a variety of defense and technology firms. 

Some of those holdings have only tenuous connections to space, and in some cases none at all. The fund currently holds companies such as Advanced Micro Devices and Deere alongside aerospace names.

The SPDR S&P Kensho Final Frontiers ETF (ROKT), which has around $80 million in assets, tracks an index designed to capture companies driving innovation in both deep space and deep sea exploration. 

Its portfolio includes large aerospace and defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, which participate in space programs but generate most of their revenue elsewhere.

Roundhill’s MARS ETF enters that landscape aiming to focus more squarely on companies whose businesses are directly tied to the space economy.