FOWF vs WAR

FOWFBPacer Solactive Whitney Future of Warfare ETF

WARCU.S. Global Technology and Aerospace & Defense ETF

In short

FOWF Most defense funds are built around the old primes. FOWF tracks the Solactive Whitney Future of Warfare Index, aimed at companies behind emerging defense technology across the U.S. and allied nations.

WAR Most defense funds buy the primes. WAR's bet is that modern warfare runs on chips, code and data centers, so it pairs aerospace and defense names with semiconductors and cybersecurity in one active, roughly 30-stock portfolio.

Stated mandate

FOWF The Fund seeks capital appreciation by tracking companies that support critical emerging defense technologies in the U.S. and its allied nations.

WAR The Fund seeks capital appreciation. It invests at least 80% of net assets in technology and aerospace and defense equities, emphasizing companies whose products, services, or innovations support national defense, including aerospace, physical, and cybersecurity defense.

Why people hold it

• FOWF Points at the next war, not the last one: the index targets companies supporting critical emerging defense technologies, not a broad aerospace-and-defense basket.
• 0.49% a year, right at the middle of the defense-theme pack. No niche premium charged for the narrower mandate.
• The mandate covers the U.S. and its allied nations, so allied suppliers abroad are in scope, not just Pentagon contractors.
• Roughly 100 holdings spread the theme across many names instead of a few giants, and the fund distributes quarterly.

• WAR Defense plus the tech behind it: aerospace and defense manufacturers sit alongside semiconductors, cybersecurity, data centers and electronic warfare names.globenewswire.com
• Actively managed, not a fixed defense index: managers pick names with quantitative screens and fundamental research, benchmarked to the S&P 500 Total Return Index.usfunds.comusglobaletfs.com
• Roughly 30 holdings, so each position carries real weight. A concentrated take on the theme rather than a watered-down basket.

Worth knowing

• FOWF Launched in December 2024, so the track record is short and any read on its risk profile rests on limited history.
• Small and thinly traded next to category heavyweights like ITA and XAR, which can mean wider spreads on larger orders.
• A narrow theme tied to defense budgets and procurement cycles, so it can move very differently from a broad market fund.

• WAR 0.60% a year runs a touch above the typical global thematic fund. That is the tab for an active manager rather than an index.
• Non-diversified and deliberately concentrated, so a rough stretch for chipmakers can drag it even when defense spending holds up.globenewswire.com
• Launched at the end of 2024 and still a small, lightly traded fund: short track record, and spreads can be wider than in the category giants.

Full FOWF profile⁠

Full WAR profile⁠