CTAP vs UPAR

CTAPASimplify US Equity PLUS Managed Futures Strategy ETF

UPARCUPAR Ultra Risk Parity ETF

In short

CTAP Most capital-efficient funds stack bonds or gold on top of stocks. This one stacks a systematic long/short managed futures program: 100% equities plus 100% trend following in a single share, at 0.10% net of a waiver through December 4, 2026.

UPAR Risk parity built for four economic weathers, then dialed up. UPAR balances risk across global stocks, commodity producers and gold, TIPS and Treasuries, then levers the mix toward 160%-180% exposure, reset quarterly rather than daily.

Stated mandate

CTAP The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation through two actively managed strategies: US large-cap equities and managed futures.

UPAR The actively managed Fund seeks positive returns during economic growth, capital preservation during economic contraction, and preservation of real returns during heightened inflation.

Why people hold it

• CTAP Cheapest fee in its capital-efficient peer group: 0.10% net of a waiver through December 4, 2026 (0.28% gross), versus 0.20% for NTSX and 0.20% for GDE, neither of which is waived.
• One share carries 100% large-cap US equity exposure plus 100% managed futures exposure, so the diversifier rides on top of the stock sleeve instead of replacing it.simplify.us
• The trend engine isn't homemade. It's a swap on Simplify's CTA ETF, a long/short futures program designed by Altis Partners, a firm with 20 years in the category.businesswire.com
• A below-median fee and a clean two-sleeve build put it among the stronger implementations in the capital-efficient multi-asset group.

• UPAR Cheaper than the typical fund in its allocation cohort (0.68% versus a 0.78% median) for a playbook that mostly lived behind institutional doors.
• Leverage resets at each quarterly rebalance, not daily. The index targets 1.4 times the exposures of its unlevered risk-parity sibling, so day-to-day compounding is not the story.sec.gov
• Four sleeves, four jobs: equities for growth, Treasuries and TIPS for contraction, producers and gold for inflation. The lower-risk sleeves get the biggest notional weights.sec.gov

Worth knowing

• CTAP Stacking is leverage. Exposure runs to roughly twice assets via a total return swap, which magnifies losses if a sleeve falls and leaves the fund reliant on the counterparty paying.simplify.us
• The futures sleeve is built for low correlation with stocks, not a timed hedge, so it can move against the equity leg in either direction.simplify.usbusinesswire.com
• Launched in December 2025, so the operating history is short, and the prospectus classifies the fund as non-diversified.simplify.us

• UPAR Leverage magnifies moves in both directions, and the filings say so plainly. This sits at the higher-volatility end of the allocation group.sec.gov
• Treasuries and TIPS carry the largest notional weights, so interest rate swings move this portfolio more than they would a stock-heavy allocation fund.sec.gov
• Thinly traded for its category, so spreads and limit orders matter more here than with the giant allocation funds.

Full CTAP profile⁠

Full UPAR profile⁠