Cathie Wood’s ARK expands to Europe despite poor performance

Cathie Wood’s ARK has expanded to Europe, launching its first exchange traded funds on the London Stock Exchange.

An analysis by Morningstar earlier this year found that ARK had destroyed $14bn in wealth over the past decade, topping the list of wealth destroyers among investment companies.

“These funds managed to lose value for shareholders even during a generally bullish market,” Morningstar said.

Wood’s firm brought in nearly $30bn in assets in 2020 and 2021, which were then decimated during 2022’s market shift, which saw ARK Innovation drop 67 per cent.

The ARK Innovation ETF is down 9.8 per cent over the last five years, and 14.8 per cent since 2024 began.

Morningstar found that ARK Innovation destroyed $7.1bn in wealth, while healthcare-focused ARK Genomic Revolution ETF destroyed $4.2bn in wealth.

Now, both of the Innovation and Genomic Revolution ETFs are launching in the UK, along with a new Artificial Intelligence & Robotics ETF, built specifically for the European market.

The ETFs have launched today on the German and London Stock Exchange, with versions coming on the Italian and Dutch stock exchanges tomorrow.

The move comes after ARK bought passive investment specialist Rize ETF last year, and has begun to streamline the firm’s offerings.

Wood said: “Over the past decade, a substantial portion of our website traffic, subscriber base, inbound requests, and social media traffic have come from people in Europe – a clear signal of the strong interest and demand for ARK’s investment strategies within the European market.”

“We’re bringing our best ideas and a decade-long track record to Europe, backed by a best-in-class product and distribution team from the former founders and team members of Rize ETF. This marks the beginning of a deep, enduring partnership with European investors, as we head into a future shaped by disruptive innovation.”

All of the ETFs carry on ongoing charges figure of 0.75 per cent