Aura ETFs, a new player in the exchange-traded funds landscape, officially launched on 8 April 2026 with the launch of the U.S. Defense ETF (ticker DUTY), listed on NYSE Arca.
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Article created by the editorial staff of ETFWorld.co.uk
Rob Oliver, Aura ETFs
The fund represents the first collaboration between Aura and Solactive, which developed the underlying index, the Solactive U.S. Defense Index. The aim is to offer investors targeted exposure to US companies active in defence systems, military technology, logistics and mission support, as well as in cybersecurity and digital infrastructure for defence.
The context: rising military spending and growing cyber threats
The launch of DUTY comes at a time when defence spending is experiencing a structural acceleration globally. According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), global military spending reached $2.718 trillion in 2024, an increase of 9.4% compared to the previous year. The United States remains the world’s top spender, with approximately $997 billion in 2024, accounting for around 37% of the global total.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) estimates that global defence spending reached $2.63 trillion in 2025, representing a real increase of 2.5%. Meanwhile, the cybersecurity sector continues to expand: Cybersecurity Ventures projects that global spending on security products and services will exceed $520 billion in 2026, doubling from the $260 billion recorded in 2021. Threats are intensifying, with attacks enabled by artificial intelligence, deepfakes and synthetic identities compromising automated systems in real time.
Index methodology: ARTIS and the four pillars of modern defence
The Solactive U.S. Defense Index utilises ARTIS®, Solactive’s proprietary natural language processing system, to identify and classify companies with significant exposure to the defence sector. The engine analyses millions of public documents — including financial statements, financial news and company descriptions — assigning each company a thematic relevance score.
To be included in the index, a company must derive at least 50% of its revenue from one or more of these four areas:
Defence systems and military platforms
Defence technology
Logistics, simulation and mission support
Cybersecurity and digital infrastructure for defence
The initial universe comprises stocks listed on the NYSE and Nasdaq that meet minimum market capitalisation and liquidity requirements, selected from the aerospace, defence, communications, software and IT sectors. The final composition favours companies with the highest scores, introducing buffers to reduce unnecessary turnover.
Weighting is based on free-float market capitalisation, with a maximum cap of 8% per individual security and stricter limits for companies focused on cybersecurity. The index is rebalanced every six months to maintain the representativeness of the defence theme.
Aura ETFs: who is behind the new operator
Aura ETFs was founded by Rob Oliver, an industry veteran with over 17 years’ experience in asset management and ETFs. Oliver has held senior roles at J.P. Morgan, where he led the Beta & Systematic Strategies research team, and at Global X ETFs, where he served as Head of Europe and built the European platform from scratch until it reached a multi-million-dollar market capitalisation. Aura positions itself as a specialist in thematic and income strategies, with an approach focused on disciplined construction and measurable outcomes.
For the launch of DUTY, Aura has chosen to partner with Tidal Financial Group, a white-label platform that manages over 415 ETFs for more than 90 issuers, with over $63 billion in total assets under management as at 31 March 2026. Tidal offers a comprehensive infrastructure covering everything from product planning to fund management, compliance and trade execution.
The lead market maker is GTS Securities, the NYSE’s largest designated market maker (DMM), responsible for over 1,100 listed companies with a combined market capitalisation of $14 trillion. GTS has acquired a stake in Mischler Financial Group, a broker-dealer owned by veterans with service-related disabilities, in a partnership that combines quantitative technology and capital markets services.
Social impact: 10% of fees to veterans
A key feature of the launch is Aura’s commitment to donate 10% of DUTY’s total management fees to charitable organisations supporting US military veterans. Oliver stated: “Investing in national security should also support those who have served.” GTS Securities, acting as lead market maker, is a firm with roots in quantitative trading that has forged strategic partnerships with veteran-owned firms, lending consistency to the message.
Timo Pfeiffer, Chief Markets Officer at Solactive, commented: “We are delighted to support Aura ETFs in the launch of its first ETF. With the Solactive U.S. Defense Index, we provide the benchmark for a strategy focused on a segment that has attracted growing market attention against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical and security concerns.”
Rob Oliver added: “Solactive has been a strong partner in developing an index that captures the breadth of the modern US defence ecosystem. Their approach aligns with our focus on building targeted and transparent ETF strategies.”
Competition and positioning
DUTY enters a segment already populated by funds such as the Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF (PPA) and the SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF (XAR), which recorded returns of +5.82% and +5.48% respectively in the first quarter of 2026. DUTY’s differentiation lies in the explicit inclusion of cybersecurity and digital infrastructure, as well as the use of ARTIS for selection based on natural language rather than traditional sector classifications.
The risk for investors relates to sector concentration, exposure to companies operating in a market heavily dependent on federal government budgetary decisions, and reliance on NLP models for asset selection, which may introduce distortions if corporate language evolves more rapidly than the algorithms.
Conclusions
DUTY represents an interesting new offering in the thematic ETF sector, combining the solidity of major defence contractors with the growth of cybersecurity firms. The timing of the launch coincides with a cycle of structural expansion in global military spending and the acceleration of digital threats. Rob Oliver’s experience and Tidal Financial Group’s infrastructure provide a solid operational foundation, although the fund will need to demonstrate its ability to attract significant assets to consolidate its position in a competitive market.
Source: ETFWorld.co.uk
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