This ETF, called the “Tuttle Capital Congressional Trading ETF,” will be actively managed and will consist of stock selections included in mandatory public disclosure statements of members of Congress. These notifications are made under the Congressional Information Interlock Act (STOCK Act), which was enacted in 2012. This law aims to prevent US legislative officials from using inside information for their own benefit.

Tuttle Capital announced that they will take into consideration the past investment returns performance of Congress members, the committees they serve on and their seniority in their investment decisions. Additionally, the fund demands 0.75% as a management fee.

This offering brings to mind the Unusual Whales Democratic ETF (NANC) and Unusual Whales Republican ETF (KRUZ) funds launched by Subversive Capital Advisors in February 2023, which offer a similar investment strategy. These funds gained 17% and 8%, respectively, this year, according to Yahoo Finance and MarketWatch data, surpassing the 12.7% return rate of the S&P 500 in the same period. This highlights the potential profitability of benefiting from the investment choices of members of Congress.

Tuttle Capital has a reputation for unconventional ETF offerings. The company applied for two separate ETFs in 2022, focusing on the investment recommendations of Jim Cramer, host of the CNBC Mad Money program. One of them was the “Inverse Cramer ETF”, which bet against Cramer’s recommendations, while the other followed a supportive strategy called the “Long Cramer ETF”. However, these funds did not last long. The Long Cramer ETF was closed after only five months of trading, and the Inverse Cramer ETF was closed after eleven months.

This new initiative from Tuttle Capital offers a different approach than traditional ETF investment strategies. With this ETF, investors hope to benefit from the investment decisions of members of Congress. However, this approach also has some risks. It is obvious that the investment success of congressmen is no guarantee of their future performance. Additionally, the management fee of this fund is 0.75%, which means a higher cost compared to other exchange-traded funds.

Matthew Tuttle, CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Tuttle Capital, continues to talk about similar unconventional ideas. Recently, popular Reddit investor Keith Gill, also known as “Roaring Kitty,” suggested that an ETF consisting of the investment selections could be “an interesting idea.” This idea is not yet at an official application stage, but it has the potential to attract the attention of investors.

All in all, the Tuttle Capital Congressional Trading ETF is an exciting innovation in the ETF world. While it may be an attractive idea to benefit from the investment decisions of members of Congress, the risks of this approach must also be taken into account. It is not yet clear whether this ETF will hit the market, but we can expect to see new developments in this regard in the coming months.