The SEC recently approved bitcoin ETFs in landmark investing decision

Crypto ETFs are driving cryptocurrency adoption

In 2024, the SEC approved ETFs that track the price of bitcoin called spot bitcoin ETFs. These funds have since significantly increased investment inflows into cryptocurrency markets.

ETFs were first created as an alternative to mutual funds, combining the diversification benefits of a mutual fund with the ability to trade throughout the day on a stock exchange.

BlackRock says investor demand and improvements in underlying fund technology have supercharged ETF availability in 2025

Investors are likely most familiar with ETFs that invest in an index or other grouping of stocks. However, BlackRock breaks down a wide variety of options, including commodity ETFs, currency ETFs, and bond ETFs.

Explore a giant ETF database

Given that there are more than 3,000 ETFs trading in the US, the list of options for individual investors may be overwhelming. VettaFi provides a database that allows potential investors to sort funds by sector, region, strategy, fund issuers, and more. It tracks nearly 100 funds focused on general technology but just one that focuses on copper mining.

ETFs are rising in popularity

While less than half of retail investors hold ETFs in their portfolio, this figure is up dramatically in recent years, and experts forecast continued adoption as more options hit the market and total ETF assets under management continue to grow.

A bond ETF lets someone invest in multiple bonds through one single fund

There are risks, there are also major perks to buying a bond ETF, like the ability to purchase bonds on the stock market.

What’s up with the new Texas Stock Exchange?

The two biggest stock exchanges in the U.S. are both based in New York—the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. But a potential new “Texas Stock Exchange”—which would be based in, you guessed it, Texas—could change that. To find out more about the project, backed by enormous companies such as BlackRock and Citadel, watch this video.

Who accepts bitcoin payments in 2025?

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are used primarily as stores of value or speculative assets, and less likely to be used to purchase goods and services. Advocates for the currency say as an increasing number of retailers accept bitcoin, average holders will begin to treat the currency more like traditional money.

The pros of exchange-traded funds include ease of access through brokerage apps and retirement savings accounts

One unexpected perk is that ETFs are typically associated with lower capital gains tax requirements. Read this list to learn more about the benefits of investing in ETFs.

Test your ETF knowledge

A 10-question quiz from the SEC allows investors to test their basic knowledge about exchange-traded funds and their investing counterparts, mutual funds. Here’s a sample question: Is the past performance of a fund a good indicator of future results? (Hint, the answer is no).

Explore a list of the world’s weirdest and wildest ETFs

Whether you’re leaping straight into the future and looking for stocks picked by AI, a sci-fi aficionado who wants to invest in space travel, or a drama enthusiast looking to make money on stock market volatility, the ETF market’s weird corners have something for you.

Meet the ‘SPY kids’ tied to Wall Street’s first ETF

When SPY became the first ETF to launch in 1993, regulators wanted its issuers to set a termination date. After initially saying the fund would cease to exist in 25 years, its issuers came up with a different strategy. They named 11 children born between 1990 and 1993 and declared that the fund would cease to exist in 2118, or 20 years after the last of the 11 “SPY kids” died. The kicker? According to Bloomberg, none of the children knew they were connected to the fate of this giant fund.

Leveraged ETFs made headlines in 2026 as a boom in single-stock leveraged products tied to AI companies drove volatility and record retail demand.

Biotech ETFs allow investors to gain exposure to multiple promising companies in the industry

Biotech ETFs offer a diversified alternative to purchasing an individual biotech stock and gambling on whether an individual company’s clinical trial yields the next blockbuster cancer treatment or an absolute flop. This list of the top biotech ETFs in 2025 can help you learn more about them.

Bitcoin, the oldest and most popular cryptocurrency, is a digital cash alternative introduced in 2009 that rapidly grew in popularity and now boasts a global user base.

There are more than 300 different thematic ETFs

Exchange-traded funds seem to offer something for everyone. As tracked by ETF.com, there are 338 thematic ETFs, offering exposure to “baskets” of stocks covering global infrastructure, genomics, cannabis, and more.

Retail investors can get exposure to commodities via various financial vehicles

While retail investors likely won't go out and purchase a bushel of commodity wheat to trade, they can get exposure to the commodities market via commodity ETFs sold on traditional stock exchanges like the NYSE and Nasdaq and other financial vehicles. There are benefits to adding commodities to a retail investor portfolio (such as a hedge against inflation and a typically low correlation with more traditional asset prices), experts caution that commodities are usually volatile investments.

The 2024 US presidential election was a breakthrough moment for prediction markets

Founded in 2018 by MIT graduates, Kalshi won a federal appeals court ruling in October 2024 that allowed it to offer election contracts in the US. When prediction markets predicted President Donald Trump's win (more accurately than most polls), prediction markets were thrust into the public eye.

The Securities and Exchange Commission was created during the Great Depression to restore public trust in financial markets after the 1929 crash.

Want to begin trading in cryptocurrency? Check out these exchanges

Explore the current cryptocurrency market. CoinMarketCap tracks 242 spot exchanges where various cryptocurrencies are traded. Newbie and experienced traders will find timely exchange ranks and scores charted according to traffic, liquidity, and trading volumes. CoinMarketCap promises legitimacy in all trading volumes reported.

Buffered ETFs are designed to protect investors from market downside while still providing exposure to upside

Investors typically hold them for a defined period before they “reset.” During periods of market volatility, buffered ETFs can seem particularly appealing.

Watch former Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler's 'Eras Tour' for the agency's 90th anniversary, a look back on the pivotal moments in the agency's history.

Many bitcoin enthusiasts have compared the cryptocurrency to digital gold

Gold is valued for its stability and reliability, serving as a hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty. Bitcoin shares both of these characteristics, but also provides near-instant liquidity and isn’t subject to government regulation.

ETFs and mutual funds both pool money into a basket of investments—but the key difference between them is that mutual funds trade just once per day after the market closes, while ETFs trade like stocks throughout the day at fluctuating prices.

Index funds are typically structured as either mutual funds or exchange-traded funds, but investors can manually recreate an index through 'direct indexing.'

Only 21 million bitcoin will ever be created—what happens then?

Bitcoin is a popular cryptocurrency with a finite supply, and the issuance of new bitcoins is currently offered as a reward for verifying the transactions on the blockchain. Experts say the currency won't reach its limit until the year 2140, and miners may ultimately rely on transaction fees.

See the top 100 ETFs by trading volume

This list grabs the top 100 by trading volume, or the average number of shares that have traded hands over a 3-month period. Top of the list is a semiconductor-focused fund from Direxion, followed by other tech-centric offerings.

FTX, one of the world's largest crypto exchanges, collapsed in 2022

As crypto markets declined during the post-pandemic slowdown, Sam Bankman-Fried propped up the markets with billions he'd earned leading FTX, one of the largest crypto exchanges. Then, in one of the most rapid financial implosions in modern history, the exchange collapsed as investors rushed to withdraw money.

Since its introduction, the price of bitcoin has experienced significant volatility

Driven in large part by speculation and intense social media attention during the pandemic, along with the availability of capital during near-zero interest rate periods, the price has seen at least three major crashes despite steadily increasing over the long run since 2014.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF is one of the most highly traded funds on the market

State Street, a popular ETF issuer, is responsible for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF. This fund trades under the SPY ticker, and State Street maintains a web page with key facts and figures on SPY. For instance, its expense ratio is 0.0945%, or $9.45 on an initial $10K investment.

Collaterized by crypto, BitUSD is considered the first stablecoin

It was created in 2014 with the intention of making cryptocurrency less volatile. While BitUSD lost its peg to the US dollar in 2018 and never recovered, Tether was created soon after it in 2014 and has had more longevity and success.

Key moments in fintech history include the transatlantic cable’s invention and E-Trade’s founding

Founded in 1982, E-Trade was the first-ever online brokerage, pioneering a method of investing that is common today. Its story is part of a timeline that the New York Times put together of key moments in early fintech history.

Check the real-time price of bitcoin

Bitcoin has gone through several boom and bust cycles. Those peaks and valleys sit on top of a steadily rising value, growing as the currency gains wider adoption. As of 2024, bitcoin’s total market value was over $1.3T, with more than 19.6 million coins in circulation. Still, the value fluctuates.

Millions of Americans will be invested in SpaceX because of the fast-tracked process to list SpaceX on the Nasdaq 100, and, subsequently, the index funds that track it.

Some venture capitalists believe cryptocurrency will revolutionize global finance

Some of the brightest minds at Andreesen-Horowitz, one of the country’s leading venture capital firms, believe the cryptocurrency ecosystem will revolutionize global finance in the coming decades. This podcast recounts, through their view, the history of crypto, how it works, and trends they see emerging in the future.

The S&P 500 selection committee has strict rules around adding a company to the index

While the decision to add a company to the index is ultimately up to the selection committee, any prospective company has to meet some criteria to be considered. To join, the company must have been profitable for the last four quarters, must have a market capitalization exceeding $22.7B, and meet certain requirements around tradeable stock availability (or float).

How COVID-19 brought new investors into the market

With fees removed from the equation and more time at home thanks to pandemic-related lockdowns, Americans who had never bought or sold stocks before started participating in the market. Charles Schwab dubs this cohort “Generation Investor” and notes individuals from all age ranges took part in this phenomenon. Study up here.

The Nasdaq was founded in 1971, marking the debut of electronic trading

The Nasdaq stock exchange arguably invented electronic trading, making it a key part of fintech history. It's often used as a benchmark for how the tech industry is performing.

Vanguard Group founder Jack Bogle created the first index fund, the Vanguard 500, in 1976—but the fund didn't take off until the 1990s.

About 17% of US adults said they had invested, traded, or used cryptocurrency in 2023.

Retail investors cannot directly invest in private credit funds—but other financial vehicles can offer exposure to the industry

For example, as some US regulations have loosened in recent years, retail investors have begun to get exposure to the private credit market via ETFs that invest in publicly traded financial vehicles with private credit exposure, such as BDCs.

Using cryptocurrency to turn traditional financial arrangements on their head

Cryptocurrency is poised to drastically change everything in the financial world, including financial arrangements. Decentralized finance makes it easier for virtually anyone to take advantage of financial markets without the need for a bank. However, there are new risks involved as well. Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics Kevin Werbach, an expert on Bitcoin and blockchains discusses it all in detail in The Conversation.

Bitcoin explained and made simple

Bitcoin, the most popular and well-known example of a cryptocurrency, came on the scene around 2010, with its evangelists proclaiming it would eventually displace government-backed traditional cash. While the concept of a digital currency may seem straightforward, the details can be deceptively simple. This quick video overview provides the foundation for a deeper dive into the world of decentralized currency.

Mutual funds were first created and sold in the US in 1924.

A history of stock exchanges, from Venitain merchants to modern day

While the idea of stock exchanges—markets where securities can be bought and sold—is mostly synonymous with Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange, and other modern markets, places to buy and sell financial instruments have a long history....

Bitcoin and ethereum are decentralized cryptocurrencies with different functions

Bitcoin, launched in 2009, is primarily a digital currency and store of value with a fixed supply. Ethereum, introduced in 2015, enables smart contracts and decentralized apps, offering more flexibility.

Visualizing the financial troubles of FTX at the time of its bankruptcy

Just before Sam Bankman-Fried declared FTX bankrupt in November of 2022, he sought to raise funds quickly to try to save the cryptocurrency exchange. As part of that attempt, he sent around a glimpse of the exchange's current balance sheet, which showed the company had liabilities of $9 billion with only $900 million in liquid assets. Check out the visualization here.

Find out how companies decide which stock exchange to list on

Tech companies often prefer to list on the tech-focused Nasdaq, whereas more traditional organizations opt for the New York Stock Exchange. Sometimes the choice is made partly based on the services an exchange offers a company.

The process of electronic funds transfer was approved in the US in 1978

An electronic funds transfer is the transfering of money from one bank account to another via computer-based systems. When it was first introduced, it was revolutionary. A video from 1980 aimed to explain the value of electronic funds transfer to consumers at the time.

After Bernie Madoff's nearly $65B Ponzi scheme was exposed, the Securities and Exchange Commission was widely criticized for being inattentive and overly lax for not having caught the fraud earlier.