Lifetime Access
2.5
hours
13
Lessons
4
Modules
You Probably Already Own ETFs. But Do You Actually Know What's in Them?
There are more than 14,000 ETFs today, holding more than $21 trillion dollars. You probably own some – and they’re great! They’re convenient, they’re cheap, they’re tax efficient – a lot of good stuff. But plenty of people who own ETFs have no idea what's inside them, how they're priced, or who's on the other side of the trade when they hit “buy”.
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And look, for some ETFs, that's fine. SPY, QQQ, the plain-vanilla stuff: they’re cheap, good, and do exactly what they say they will.
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But the ETF universe is also full of stuff that doesn't do what people expect. Leveraged ETFs that lose money even when the index goes up… Volatility ETFs that have lost 99.99% of their value since inception, by design... Commodity ETFs that bleed out a few percent a year because of the cost of carry... ETNs that went to zero in 2008 (I had a front-row seat to that one).
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I built this Masterclass – recorded in front of studio audience in New York City several years ago - because too many smart people own ETFs they don't understand.
After you take this course, you’ll have a better understanding of how to use ETFs properly, and how to avoid the ones that could blow your portfolio up.
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— JD
The Masterclass Includes:
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4 Complete Modules
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Live Q&A session (recorded in front of an audience in New York City)
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Follw-Up Audio Q&A with Jared
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2 Bonus Special Reports
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Complete Glossary and ETF Reference Guide
Module 5:
PLUS: Audience Q&A and Bonus Reports
Bonus material exclusively for ETF Masterclass students:
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Recording of the audience Q&A in New York City
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Report: The 5 ETF Trading Strategies You Should Know About Before Investing
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Report: 3 Red Flags to Watch for When Picking an ETF
Module 4:
Advanced Concepts — The Fun Stuff
The exotic, the structurally questionable, and a few products that should probably not exist. Module 4 covers:
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Futures and swaps in ETFs — and the counterparty risk most people holding leveraged ETFs have never thought about
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ETNs, what they actually are, and how a few of them went to zero in 2008
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Volatility ETFs and why VXX has lost 99.99% of its value since inception — not because something went wrong, but because of how it's designed
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One of the greatest transfers of wealth from inexperienced to experienced investors the markets have ever seen
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Short selling ETFs, why some are easy to borrow and some aren't, and the business banks have built around lending out shares
Module 3:
The Nuts and Bolts
Ever wonder what happens after you hit the “buy” button on your brokerage account? Module 3 covers:
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Who makes markets in ETFs
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What really determines an ETF's liquidity
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The anatomy of a flash crash and what ETFs had to do with it
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Bond ETFs and the weird valuation distortions they create
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Commodity ETFs, futures, and the cost of carry (the thing that eats your returns)
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Leveraged ETFs and why Jared usually stays far away from them
Module 2:
The ETF Revolution
Now we get into the actual mechanics. This is where ETFs stop being a black box. Module 2 covers:
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The unbelievably big impact ETFs have had on the investment landscape
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Different types of funds (open-end, closed-end, ETNs, ETFs)
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The creation/redemption process under the hood
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Authorized participants, creation units, and why this plumbing matters to you even though you're not a bank
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How ETFs are used in practice: long, short, hedging, outperformance trades
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A full tour of the ETF universe: broad market, sector, international, commodity, bond, leveraged
Module 1:
Introduction to Index-Based Investing
You can't understand ETFs without understanding indexes. Module 1 covers:
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The first question every investor needs to ask before they invest in anything
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The three ways indexes are weighted
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The advantages and disadvantages of index funds
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Why index funds beat 80% of actively managed funds (but why you’ll never get rich with ‘em)
Masterclass Overview: What You'll Learn
You might not need this If...
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You only own one or two big index ETFs, you plan to hold them forever, and you have no interest in ever buying anything else. In that case, you're probably fine without this course.
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You're looking for “buy this ETF, sell that one” service. The Masterclass provides an education on how ETFs work. You'll be a better investor afterwards, but you won't walk out with a list of trade ideas.
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You want to learn options or fixed income specifically. There's a Masterclass for each of those.
You'll get a lot out of this if...
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You own ETFs and you've never really looked under the hood. You don't know how they're priced, who creates the shares, or why two ETFs that look identical can behave very differently.
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You're thinking about getting into anything beyond plain-vanilla index funds: sector ETFs, country ETFs, bond ETFs, commodity ETFs. The structural details matter more here, and that's exactly what this course covers.
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You've ever wondered about leveraged ETFs, inverse ETFs, or volatility ETFs and want to know whether you should touch them. (Short answer: usually no. Long answer: in the course.)
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You're a financial professional, an advisor, or you run money. The view from inside an institutional ETF trading desk isn't something you can get anywhere else.
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You like understanding how things really work. The plumbing, the arbitrage, the bits the marketing materials don't mention.
Is the ETF Masterclass for You?
Why Should I Listen to This Guy on ETFs?
If you're new here, welcome…! Jared isn't just some guy who uses ETFs. Lehman Brothers first hired him as an index arbitrage trader in 2001. Then in 2004, he got promoted to Head of the ETF trading desk, which he ran until 2008. He has traded billions of dollars’ worth of ETFs at a level very few people in the world ever have. He saw which ones worked, which ones didn't, and which ones blew up.
That means the Masterclass explains ETFs from both sides: the retail investor side, where you hit “buy,” and the trader side, where someone like Jared was on the other end of that trade.
Jared is the founder of The Daily Dirtnap and co-founder of Jared Dillian Money. He writes the investment newsletters Street Freak and Jared Dillian’s Strategic Portfolio, and is the author of several books including Street Freak, No Worries, and Night Moves.
The ETF Masterclass was filmed in front of a live audience in New York City. It takes everything Jared learned from years on the desk and turns it into a course that individual investors and pros alike can use, whether they're running their own portfolio or somebody else's.
You'll Know What You Own
After this, you'll be able to open up any ETF, look at the construction, the weighting, and the holdings, and have a handle on what it does under the hood.
The Trader's-Eye View
Jared has traded billions of dollars in ETFs, and has the scars (and the victories) to prove it. That means he can share a perspective very few others can.
Extra Reports
5 ETF Trading Strategies You Should Know, and 3 Red Flags to Watch Out for When Picking an ETF. These are worth saving on your desktop.
A B.S. Detector for Bad ETFs
Leveraged ETFs that decay every day. Volatility ETFs with massive cost of carry. ETNs with counterparty risk most people never think about. Commodity ETFs with roll costs. Once you've seen the patterns, you can't unsee them, and you'll know to walk away.
A Glossary You'll Actually Use
Every term Jared uses, listed in the order he uses them, sorted by module. Keep it open while you watch.
Access It Forever
One payment. Lifetime access online, plus a downloadable PDF. Come back to it any time you want.
What You’ll Walk Away With
“Excellent information with a very practical viewpoint. No get rich euphoria!”
— Walt M.
“With this class, Jared took me inside the building. For years I've been outside the building. I thought I knew enough about ETFs. But with this class, I now know so much more, and I know how to move forward with a strategy for successful investing.”
— Jonny C.
“I appreciate your writing and I'm enjoying reading about options which is not something I thought I would ever write.”
— John T.
“Essential for beginners, very useful for everyone else.”
— Eric G.
“Written to give you actionable treatment of the stuff you need to know to keep you from being a complete patsy at the table with card sharks.”
— Joe W.
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“It's in the name "Masterclass", the class takes a complicated subject and explains it in a way that makes sense for those with little or no knowledge on the subject.”
— Daniel G.
“Thank you so much for the Chat GPT inclusion in the Masterclass. Wow, it's incredible. Like having my own Private Tutor 24/7.”
— Marie C.
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Jared covers topics that were completely new to me. I found I had to digest the material in small bites while I learned the language. Think of it like a college level class. You will have to take notes.
— Robert S.
“I'm a currently working through your Options Masterclass, and I just wanted to say how impactful it's been. I recently took a derivatives class, but your master class blows that out of the water.”
— Henry S.
“Worth it even if you consider yourself a seasoned pro in the options markets — which I do”
— Phil
Don't Take Our Word For It... Here's What Masterclass Students Think
The ETF
Masterclass.
Get Instant Access to Jared Dillian's ETF Masterclass
Most people who don't really understand the ETFs they own do one of two things. They shrug and keep buying whatever's trending on financial Twitter, or they panic the first time their "safe" ETF doesn't act safe. Neither one works out great.
Jared Dillian’s ETF Masterclass is the smart alternative to ‘buy and hope.’ By the time you're done, you'll know how ETFs are built, how they're traded, how they're priced, and how to tell a good one from a bad one.
For $299, you get:
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4 Complete Modules: From indexing fundamentals all the way through derivatives and counterparty risk
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Audience Q&A Recording: Filmed in front of a real audience in New York City
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2 Bonus Special Reports: Get to grips with key ETF trading strategies, and learn the red flags that make an ETF dangerous
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Glossary & ETF Reference Guide: Every term defined, sorted by module, plus a reference list of every ETF mentioned in the course
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Online and Downloadable PDF Access: Take the course however you want, come back whenever you need
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All for a one-time payment of $299
“After 25 years in the market, I discovered that true balance, the kind that provides unparalleled stability and growth, is made possible by harnessing the power of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs).”
— Jared Dillian, co-founder Jared Dillian Money
Questions,
Answered.
Not exactly. The Masterclass walks through a ton of specific ETFs by name and explains how each is constructed, what's inside it, and what to think about before buying. That's more useful than a “buy list” because it teaches you to evaluate any ETF, including ones that don't exist yet.
While this Masterclass was created in 2017, and some of the figures and specific ticker references are dated, but the actual mechanics of how ETFs work are the same. If anything, the dangerous corners of the ETF market have gotten worse since 2017, not better.
Both. The understanding comes first: modules 1 and 2 are the foundation. Then module 3 covers the mechanics of how ETFs are traded, including what determines and how block trading works. The first bonus report, "5 Master Trading Strategies," covers being long, being short, long/short pairs, outperformance trades, and underperformance trades, with examples and the math.
The ETF Masterclass covers bond ETFs from the structural side: how indexing works for bonds, the distortions that bond ETFs create, why the liquidity question is different for fixed income. The Bond Masterclass covers bonds themselves: duration, the yield curve, credit risk, the different types, building a bond portfolio. They complement each other, but they're not duplicative. Plenty of students take both.
No. If you’re interested in a portfolio constructed entirely of ETFs, the Strategic Portfolio is a great fit for you.
Briefly. ETFs have some tax advantages over mutual funds (the creation/redemption process minimizes capital gains distributions), and that's covered. But this isn't a tax course. For specifics on your situation, talk to a tax professional.
Depends how deep you want to go. You could blow through the core material in a few sittings, or take a few weeks with it. But this isn't a one-and-done — most students come back to it every time they're sizing up a new ETF or wondering what's really going on with one they already own.
Yes. Once you're in, you have lifetime access.
Zero. The course was built with beginners in mind, but the back half is advanced enough that almost nobody walks away without learning something new.
Jared was head of ETF trading at Lehman Brothers from 2004 to 2008. He traded billions of dollars in ETFs and the underlying baskets, ran index arbitrage for 3 years before that, and saw firsthand how the products are built, traded, and (sometimes) broken. There aren't many people in the world who can teach this stuff from that level of direct experience.
No problem. Email anytime at support@jareddillianmoney.com.
About The ETF Masterclass
Published in 2017, the ETF Masterclass is the original course in Jared Dillian Money's Masterclass series, which also includes the Bond Masterclass (2019) and Options Masterclass (2025).
"Most people who own ETFs have no idea how they actually work," Jared says. "They see a ticker, they see a chart, and they assume it does what the name says. Sometimes it does. A lot of the time it doesn't, and that's where people get hurt. This course exists to make sure you know what you're buying before you buy it."
The Masterclass is designed for investors from beginners to professionals. It was filmed in front of a live audience in New York City, with a full live Q&A, two bonus reports, and a comprehensive glossary and reference guide.
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Jared spent his career at the center of the ETF market, including as head of ETF trading at Lehman Brothers. The Masterclass takes what he learned from that experience (and what he’s learned trading ETFs since) and turns it into a course built for investors who like to understand what they’re buying.
About Jared Dillian Money
Jared Dillian Money is a financial research and education company focused on helping thoughtful investors act decisively and manage risk like professionals. Investors don’t want more noise – they want clear thinking from someone they can trust. Not only that, they want to develop their own thinking, which is why Jared “teaches how to fish.”
Jared Dillian Money offers a range of services, including Street Freak, The Strategic Portfolio, and The Daily Dirtnap, and a growing library of Masterclasses. What they have in common is straight-talking financial wisdom - the kind that comes from 25+ years of trading experience, deep market insight, and a touch of cynicism.
Everything at Jared Dillian Money is designed to help you invest smarter, stay grounded, and avoid blowing yourself up. Whether you’re trading your own account or managing money for others, this is a place for people who take markets seriously… and aren’t afraid to take the other side of the trade.