by Darwin on August 21, 2009

Leveraged ETFs returning 2X and now, 3X the daily returns of various sectors, indices and commodities are all the rage now for both investors and regulators.  While there is ample information out there warning about some of the leveraged ETFs risks (read to understand why Ive dubbed them the Riskiest ETFs on Earth), there are still certainly appropriate uses by retail and sophisticated investors as long as they are familiar with these risks and take appropriate measures to mitigate/hedge those risks (such as overlaying with a stock option strategy).  As such, I wanted to provide a comprehensive list of all the leveraged ETFs that exist today with an easily referenced ticker symbol list.  Inevitably, youll be reading about leveraged ETF lawsuits before long, as well as proposed regulation and other measures to protect us from ourselves.  I think by now, there is ample information out there warning retail investors about the prospective risks of utilizing these daily rebalancing ETFs, especially when held over the long term and the companies themselves publicize the risks prominently on their websites and in the prospectus, but not its never enough to satiate a litigious investor looking at a substantial loss.  For now, which the financial innovation continues and with an additional tool in the traders arsenal, its worth knowing whats out there.

To my knowledge, the only companies offering leveraged ETFs are Direxion and Proshares, offering the 3X and 2X daily return ETFs, respectably.  Ive also listed out a niche US Home Price ETF pair at the bottom of this article as well.  As new leveraged ETFs are added (which Im sure theyre not done yet), Ill be sure to update the list.  As such, just bookmark this page, stumble it, or do whatever it is you do to categorize your favs so you can come back to this when you want to catch a quick market move, hedge some personal risk or whatever it is you find leveraged ETFs to be useful for.

3X ETFs Long

BGU      Large Cap Bull 3x Shares

MWJ     Mid Cap Bull 3x Shares

ERX     Energy Bull 3x Shares

3X ETFs Short

BGZ     Large Cap Bear 3x Shares

MWN     Mid Cap Bear 3x Shares