Asset manager VanEck is listing the VanEck Bionic Engineering UCITS ETF today on both the London Stock Exchange and the German stock exchange Xetra. The new ETF allows investors to invest in companies from the bionics sector, the firm says.
The firm writes that bionics involves research and development of approaches for developing technical applications based on the model of living systems. The fundamental notion of bionics is the transfer of biology to technology. In the context of healthcare, the term ‘bionics’ represents technologies designed to enhance or restore functions of human body. Fine examples of bionic engineering include prosthetics, bio-printed tissues, replacement organs and body function aids.
“The proportion of the elderly population is rising and with it the demand for technical solutions such as hearing and visual aids, pacemakers, artificial joints and the like that improve the quality of life in the old age,” says Martijn Rozemuller, CEO at VanEck Europe. “At the same time, increasingly available bionic tools are helping people with chronic diseases such as diabetes or functional disorders.”
“As the technology develops, we expect the applications based on functions of the brain and nerve systems to become more prominent. Bionics also have the potential to disrupt healthcare, with innovations like neuroprosthetics enabling treatment of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases as well as direct brain-to-device communication for paralyzed people.” adds Dominik Schmaus, Product Manager at VanEck Europe. “Bionic Engineering can also be a factor for change in social attitudes. It can reduce stigma and discrimination that people with disability often experience.”
The VanEck Bionic Engineering UCITS ETF follows the MVIS Global Bionic Healthcare ESG Index, which tracks the performance of companies involved in medical, dental or visual implants, bioprinting, prosthetics or organ and tissue preservation. The accumulating VanEck Bionic Engineering UCITS ETF has a total expense ratio (TER) of 0.55 per cent and is rebalanced quarterly.
The ETF excludes companies that manufacture implantable or wearable devices or materials used only for cosmetic purposes. The index also excludes companies that have committed very serious violations of social norms, generate sales from controversial weapons or exceed certain thresholds for their sales in various sectors, such as civilian firearms or tobacco.
