BlackRock Introduces Two New ETFs for European Investors to Customize Exposure to U.S. Equities

Manuela Sperandeo, Head of Europe & Middle East iShares Product at BlackRock

• The new ETFs offer investors more options for more granular equity exposures to provide access to U.S. companies through subsets of the Nasdaq-100 index
• Funds accompany the previously launched iShares S&P 500 Top 20 UCITS ETF

iShares Nasdaq 100 Top 30 UCITS ETF

iShares Nasdaq 100 ex-Top 30 UCITS ETF

In 2024, European investors committed USD107bn to U.S. equity ETPs – over double the previous record inflows seen in 2021. Likewise last year, of the ten largest asset gathering ETFs in Europe, seven were US equity exposures. With the addition of two new Nasdaq ETF exposures (iShares Nasdaq 100 Top 30 UCITS ETF and iShares Nasdaq 100 ex-Top 30 UCITS ETF), BlackRock is empowering European investors with simple solutions to express more granular views on the Nasdaq 100 index. These products offer investors an expanded toolkit for a building block approach in U.S. equities, enabling them to navigate markets with flexibility.

The iShares Nasdaq 100 Top 30 UCITS ETF provides targeted access to the 30 largest companies, including some of the largest technology companies in the world, within the NASDAQ 100 Index, representing the core drivers of market performance. The Nasdaq top 30 index has outperformed the Nasdaq 100 index in multiple periods since 2007, delivering 8.8% excess return over the last year. By focusing exclusively on the market leaders, the fund enables investors to build targeted exposure in their portfolios to companies that have consistently delivered returns and contribute to market growth.

For investors looking to capitalise on what could be the next generation of potential growth companies within the Nasdaq-100 index, BlackRock has launched the iShares Nasdaq 100 ex-Top 30 UCITS ETF. The next 70 stocks within the index exhibit a lower volatility profile, relatively higher value tilt and less mega-cap concentration compared to Nasdaq 100, allowing investors to diversify their broad technology-heavy exposures.

Manuela Sperandeo, Head of Europe & Middle East iShares Product at BlackRock said, “European investors can now use iShares ETFs to access both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq-100 with precision, enabling them to easily customise their portfolios and capitalise on growth potential whilst maintaining diversification.”

These funds accompany the iShares S&P 500 Top 20 UCITS ETF, which launched at the end of 2024. With the addition of these funds, BlackRock is providing investors with the tools they need to take a more granular approach to how they allocated to U.S. equities, especially given the concentration of the U.S. within global equity indices.

The ability to easily access or customise U.S. market cap exposure in an ETF is pertinent to various investor types – including first-time investors, portfolio builders, institutional investors, and financial advisors.

The BlackRock Investment Institute (BII) maintains an overweight on U.S. equities. Resilient economic growth is helping companies and sectors beyond the “Magnificent 7”. That’s partly driven by artificial intelligence (AI) spurring earnings beyond the initial winners during an economic transformation and policy change. These products give investors options to express their own views however they see markets moving.