Goldman Sachs ETF expansion and an insurgent issuer’s record-setting launch wave headlined this week’s ETF Prime. Host Nate Geraci welcomed Bryon Lake, global co-head of third party wealth and chief transformation officer at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, followed later by Josh Jung and Anthony Crinieri of Corgi.
Key Takeaways:
- Goldman’s Innovator acquisition gave the firm over 40% market share in defined outcome ETFs.
- Corgi executed the two largest single-day ETF launch events in history: 34 and then 35 ETFs.
- Corgi is aggressively cutting fees in the thematic, leveraged, and buffer ETF categories.
Lake led with Goldman’s April acquisition of Innovator Capital Management, the pioneer of the defined outcome ETF category. The deal brought over 40% market share, roughly 180 ETFs, and $35 billion in assets into Goldman’s franchise. Lake said the firm is “out of the gates fast” just two months post-close. On competition, he said Goldman likes to “live in a good neighborhood,” viewing rival products as good for investors.
Goldman entered the ETF market in 2015 with a passive product, the Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF (GSLC ), which remains its most popular fund by assets. Most recent launches have shifted toward discretionary active management, particularly in fixed income.
Lake pointed to the Goldman Sachs Core Bond ETF (GBND ), now past $500 million in assets, as evidence that investors want active human management navigating duration and credit quality. He also noted the SEC’s approval of Goldman’s ETF share class filing provides useful future optionality.
Corgi's ETF Disruption Strategy
Corgi is an AI-first insurance carrier founded in 2024. Jung explained that the firm moved into asset management by packaging its own corporate asset allocation into ETFs, offering that same tactical optionality to retail traders. The firm raised $160 million in May at a $1.3 billion valuation.
Crinieri described the go-to-market approach as deliberately unconventional. Corgi executed the two largest single-day ETF launch events in history: 34 ETFs in early May and 35 more in June. The firm now has nearly 90 ETFs live and recently crossed $610 million in assets.
Fee compression sits at the heart of the strategy. Crinieri said incumbents have grown complacent on pricing, noting some leveraged ETF providers charge 90 to 150 basis points for products Corgi offers at a fraction of that cost. The firm’s insurance business backstop allows it to operate at break-even costs that most standalone issuers cannot match.
Corgi also deploys internal AI models to scrape X and Reddit for real-time demand signals, sourcing thematic ideas across quantum computing, drones, sports betting, and semiconductor photonics. He said the firm is targeting the self-directed retail market, which he estimated at over $12 trillion. On competing against established industry giants, Crinieri was direct: “We will outwork everybody.”
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