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Investing by idea, not index: Saxo’s thematic ETPs in one click

Jacob Falkencrone 400x400
Jacob Falkencrone

Global Head of Investment Strategy

Key points:

   
  • Saxo launches six new thematic ETPs, offering focused yet diversified exposure to powerful global trends with highly competitive pricing.
  • Each ETP holds around ten carefully selected stocks across regions and value-chain stages, providing targeted yet diversified exposure.
  • These products offer an efficient, transparent way to invest in long-term ideas such as AI, defence, cyber security, and healthcare innovation.

Exceptional value through competitive pricing

One of the standout features of Saxo’s thematic ETPs is our competitive pricing, arguably the best available in the market. This adds significant value, particularly for long-term investors looking to maximize returns over time. By offering the most cost-effective way to gain exposure to transformative global trends, Saxo ensures that investment costs do not erode potential gains.

A new way to own the themes shaping tomorrow

Investing used to be about geography and sectors. Today, it's about ideas. From artificial intelligence to defence and healthcare innovation, the most powerful forces in the market are reshaping entire industries, and Saxo's new thematic ETPs make it easier than ever to invest in them at a competitive price that complements long-term investment strategies.

Emphasizing simplicity & transparency

Trade a broad selection of assets in one click and know exactly where your capital goes. This simplicity reinforces the ease and straightforwardness of our services, making investing intuitive without the need for extensive time, knowledge, or funds to build your portfolio.

Markets are increasingly driven by structural change rather than short-term cycles. AI is transforming productivity, defence budgets are rising, and the need for cyber protection is now universal. Meanwhile, investors continue to seek stability through dividend-growing companies, while blockchain and medical breakthroughs redefine the world we live in.

These are not passing stories. They are long-term trends shaping economies and investment returns for years to come. Saxo’s new thematic ETPs make it possible to gain exposure to these ideas in a single, simple trade at a cost that won't break the bank.

What exactly is an ETP?

ETP stands for Exchange-Traded Product, an instrument listed on an exchange that tracks the performance of an underlying asset or basket. The category includes ETFs (funds), ETNs (notes), and ETCs (commodities).

Saxo’s new thematic ETPs fall under this umbrella. Each one tracks a curated basket of roughly ten stocks linked by a common theme, such as artificial intelligence or healthcare innovation. Investors can buy or sell them intraday, like single stock, while benefiting from diversified exposure within that theme.

ETPs versus ETFs – similar, but not identical

ETFs and ETPs share most characteristics: both are listed, transparent, and easy to trade. The main difference lies in structure and purpose.

  • ETFs usually track a broader index, such as the S&P 500 or MSCI World.
  • Thematic ETPs are more focused, targeting a specific narrative or trend.

Think of an ETF as owning the market as it is today, while an ETP lets you own a specific idea about tomorrow.

ETPs versus buying single stocks

Many investors try to build their own mini-portfolios of thematic names. While that can work, it comes with drawbacks.

  • Costs: buying and rebalancing multiple stocks means several commissions and potentially higher spreads.
  • Time and complexity: keeping track of earnings, news and valuations for every company takes work.
  • Portfolio size: smaller accounts often cannot achieve sufficient diversification without taking on concentration risk.

A single thematic ETP achieves similar exposure in one trade, at lower cost and with professional oversight of composition and weighting.

How Saxo’s thematic ETPs are constructed

Each Saxo thematic ETP provides exposure to about ten relevant and liquid stocks that together represent the chosen theme. The construction process focuses on:

  • Relevance: Companies with meaningful revenue exposure or strategic alignment to the theme.
  • Diversification: Exposure across geographies, market caps, and sub-industries along the value chain.
  • Balance: Equal or near-equal weights so that no single company dominates.
  • Transparency: Constituents published and reviewed regularly, with rebalances to keep the exposure current.

Cornerstones of thematic trading

What is a certificate and how is it built? A Themes Trading certificate is a portfolio of thematic stocks or assets, carefully selected by our experts. We identify trends by analyzing macroeconomic data, industry news, and market flow. Each potential company or asset in a certificate is examined. We choose only securities that best represent the thematic idea. Once the universe has been allocated and the certificate is listed on SIX Swiss Exchange in cooperation with Leonteq and SAXO AS, it is continually monitored, validated, and reallocated every three months.

“Invest by idea, not by accident. A thematic sleeve helps you own the story you actually believe in.”  - Jacob Falkencrone

Each Saxo ETP is built by the bank’s investment strategy team to capture the full value chain of a theme, from upstream enablers to downstream leaders. This means investors get a balanced mix of innovation and scale, with global reach and periodic rebalancing to keep exposure current. It is a professional-grade structure made accessible to everyday investors, all at a very competitive price.

This design strikes a deliberate balance between focus and diversification: concentrated enough to capture a theme, yet broad enough to reduce company-specific risk.

Why a thematic ETP can be a smart way to get exposure

A well-designed thematic ETP solves several challenges investors face when trying to capture a trend:

  • Convenience and efficiency: Instead of researching and trading ten individual stocks, investors make one trade and instantly hold them all.
  • Diversification within the theme: Spreads risk across key players rather than relying on a single winner.
  • Cost efficiency: One transaction rather than multiple orders means lower trading costs, especially for smaller portfolios.
  • Time saving: The ETP provider manages updates and rebalances, so investors do not have to track every company.
  • Accessibility: Thematic ETPs offer professional-grade exposure to retail investors in the same transparent format as ETFs and at the most attractive pricing available.

The six launch themes

Artificial Intelligence: AI is reshaping productivity across sectors, from chipmakers building the hardware backbone to cloud providers hosting vast data models and software firms embedding AI in every process. It is becoming a foundational layer of the global economy.

Defence: Geopolitical tensions have triggered a structural rearmament cycle. Governments are increasing budgets for modern equipment, surveillance, and cyber-capabilities, benefiting defence contractors, aerospace firms, and suppliers throughout the chain.

Cyber Security: Digital infrastructure is now as vital as electricity. Rising cyberattacks on companies and governments make protection spending non-discretionary. This theme captures firms providing the tools, software, and services that secure data and networks.

Dividend Growth: In uncertain markets, companies with a proven history of raising dividends year after year offer stability and discipline. They combine resilient cash flows with shareholder-focused management and long-term compounding potential.

Crypto & Blockchain: Blockchain is evolving from a niche technology to a new financial infrastructure layer. Companies enabling tokenization, digital payments, and decentralized finance are building the foundation for a more transparent, programmable economy.

Healthcare Innovation: Ageing populations and breakthroughs in science are fueling demand for new therapies and medical technologies. From genomics and precision medicine to next-generation diagnostics, innovation is redefining the healthcare landscape.

Portfolio context: where thematic ETPs fit

Most investors use thematic exposures as satellites around a diversified core of broad-market ETFs or mutual funds. A modest allocation to a few themes can add both engagement and return potential without significantly changing overall risk. Thematic portfolios provide access to innovative investment ideas while allowing you broad diversification.

Because thematic returns are often driven by innovation cycles, they require patience and a long-term horizon. These are stories that play out over years, not months.

What to monitor

Like any listed product, ETPs have market prices that move intraday. Investors should be mindful of:

  • Tracking difference between the ETP and its underlying basket.
  • Bid-ask spreads and liquidity when trading.
  • Corporate actions or index changes that may alter holdings.
  • Broader news and policy developments affecting each theme.

Transparency makes this easy: Saxo will publish full holdings, methodology, and updates directly on its platform.

Risks to keep in mind

All investments carry risk, and thematic products are no exception.

  • Concentration: Each ETP focuses on one trend or theme, so diversification across multiple themes is important.
  • Hype cycles: Even strong themes can move through phases of enthusiasm and consolidation before reaching steady adoption. Prices may run ahead of fundamentals and later adjust.
  • Valuations: Popular themes can trade at higher multiples; returns depend on growth catching up with expectations.
  • Liquidity and regulation: Particularly relevant for emerging areas such as blockchain or biotech.

A disciplined approach, clear objectives, and a long-term view help manage these dynamics.

Explore the themes

Saxo's six thematic ETPs – Artificial Intelligence, Defence, Cyber Security, Dividend Growth, Crypto and Blockchain, and Healthcare Innovation – are available directly through the Saxo platform. Each product page includes full details of methodology, holdings, and updates.

For investors who want to own the trends reshaping the world, Saxo’s thematic ETPs turn complex ideas into simple, diversified investments, one trade at a time. With the best pricing in the market, Saxo ensures that your investments remain cost-effective, enhancing the value of long-term returns.

 

 


This material is marketing content and should not be regarded as investment advice. Trading financial instruments carries risks and historic performance is not a guarantee of future results.

The instrument(s) referenced in this content may be issued by a partner, from whom Saxo receives promotional fees, payment or retrocessions. While Saxo may receive compensation from these partnerships, all content is created with the aim of providing clients with valuable information and options.

 

 

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