PSFF vs SWAN

PSFFBPacer Swan SOS Fund of Funds ETF

SWANBAmplify BlackSwan Growth & Treasury Core ETF

In short

PSFF Most buffer ETFs hand you one reset date and one cap. PSFF is the fund-of-funds take: an actively steered basket of Pacer Swan SOS buffer funds with staggered one-year periods, for 0.66%.

SWAN The buffer fund that isn't one. Rather than a yearly reset and a capped ceiling, SWAN holds roughly 90% U.S. Treasuries and spends the other 10% on in-the-money S&P 500 call options, aiming for uncapped index exposure with a bond core underneath.

Stated mandate

PSFF The Fund seeks capital appreciation with downside protection. It primarily uses Pacer Swan SOS ETFs, while retaining discretion to hold other Pacer ETFs.

SWAN The fund seeks to track the S-Network BlackSwan Core Index while pursuing uncapped S&P 500 exposure and buffering against significant losses. Its strategy uses approximately 90% U.S. Treasury securities and 10% SPY in-the-money call options.

Why people hold it

• PSFF One ticker, many reset dates. It holds Pacer Swan SOS funds whose roughly one-year investment periods begin in January, April, July and October, so you are not pinned to a single start date.paceretfs.com
• Discretion is the product. The sub-advisor blends Conservative, Moderate and Flex sleeves and may hold other Pacer ETFs, including trend-following ones, rather than locking to one risk setting.paceretfs.com
• Cost sits near the middle of a small buffer-on-S&P-500 group at 0.66%, with no fee waiver in play. SWAN, the group's other top scorer, runs 0.49%.
• Live since 2020 and rated in the upper half of its buffer peer group, with trading that is reasonably active for a niche structured-outcome wrapper.

• SWAN Cheapest in its peer group at 0.49%, against a 0.79% median for buffer-style rivals such as BAPR (0.79%) and BUFR (0.95%).
• No ceiling on gains. Defined-outcome funds sell away upside above a cap; SWAN's in-the-money SPY calls are built to leave the index climb uncapped.amplifyetfs.com
• No outcome period to track: no annual reset date, no entry-timing math, no cap that expires and resets.amplifyetfs.com
• Running the same recipe since 2018, through live market stress rather than backtests, and it stands among the stronger builds in its peer group.

Worth knowing

• PSFF PSFF states no buffer or cap of its own. Those come from the underlying funds, and when it buys them mid-period it may not capture the full buffer or upside they advertise.paceretfs.comsec.gov
• A buffer is a cushion, not a floor. Underlying funds absorb a first slice of losses, then take further declines one-for-one with the S&P 500 fund they reference.sec.gov
• It is a wrapper around other Pacer funds, so their indirect costs ride along with the fund's own. Income is not the design here; payouts have not been part of the story.sec.gov

• SWAN The cushion isn't a stated number. Unlike a named-depth buffer fund (FEBT, DMAX), SWAN's downside comes from Treasuries plus option value, so it moves with markets.amplifyetfs.com
• About 90% of the portfolio is Treasuries, so interest-rate moves drive results as much as the S&P 500 does.amplifyetfs.com
• A small, thinly traded fund, so bid-ask spreads deserve more attention than with the giant buffer names.

Full PSFF profile⁠

Full SWAN profile⁠