Sports
Cage-Fighter Sponsored by Pot ETF Issuer in Rare Marketing Move
- Heavyweight Alexey Oleynik wears ETFMG-branded training gear
- ‘You hit that group of Average Joe investors,’ executive says
Alexey Oleynik
Photographer: Valery Sharifulin/TASS via Getty Images
The issuer of the world’s largest pot ETF is embracing celebrities’ growing interest in cannabis, sponsoring a UFC fighter nicknamed the Boa Constrictor.
In a highly unusual move for a provider of exchange-traded funds, ETF Managers Group LLC has signed on as the official training sponsor of Alexey Oleynik, the ninth-ranked heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, a mixed-martial arts organization. The issuer is best known for the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF, which has about $1.1 billion invested in cannabis-related companies.