Talking Real Money - Investing Talk
Exchange Traded Gambling
Mar 16, 2026
· 30m
Exchange-traded funds began as simple, low-cost index vehicles, but their popularity has sparked a flood of increasingly speculative products. Don and Tom explain how more than 1,000 new ETFs launched in the past year—many involving leverage, crypto exposure, or even single-stock bets—turning what was once a sensible investment wrapper into a playground for risky financial engineering. They discuss why firms are rushing into ETFs to capture investor dollars, how leveraged products can devastate portfolios, and why investors must focus on …