SPYU, the MAX S&P 500 4X Leveraged ETN, is a $536 million ETF whose main story is pure narrative flow. Over the past year it returned +25.7%, against +16.8% for broad US ETFs. Figures to October 2, 2026; past performance, not a recommendation.
The narrative it carries
This is its only narrative.
Pure narrative flow →
Disruptive innovation, online consumers, betting and stocks chosen by social sentiment: where the retail crowd puts its money.
The band is where this narrative’s level sits among the 22 this week. QUIET means less talked about, not falling.
| # | ETF | SHARE | ASSETS | 1 YEAR | COST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ARKK | 91.7% | $7.92bn | +0.7% | 0.75% |
| 2 | IBUY | 2.0% | $120.1m | −13.8% | 0.65% |
| 3 | BUZZ | 1.7% | $102.7m | +3.4% | 0.76% |
| 4 | MILN | 1.4% | $87.1m | −14.8% | 0.50% |
| 5 | SOCL | 1.4% | $85.0m | −28.3% | 0.65% |
| 94 other ETFs | 1.8% |
Share is each ETF’s slice of the capital carrying this narrative. 1 year is market price total return; cost is the expense ratio. See all 99 ETFs on the narrative page →
FRI OCT 2MARKET PRICE TOTAL RETURN
| 1M | 3M | YTD | 1Y | 3Y* | 5Y* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPYU | +0.4% | +5.6% | +26.5% | +25.7% | – | – |
| Pure narrative flowits narrative | +6.7% | +9.4% | +14.8% | −0.4% | +31.0% | −3.6% |
| The marketbroad US ETFs | +0.8% | +2.6% | +14.6% | +16.8% | +22.9% | +12.9% |
1M, 3M, 1Y, 3Y, 5Y: one month to five years. YTD: year to date. * A year, annualised. A dash means the ETF has not traded for the whole period. Since it started trading on December 4, 2023: +52.0% a year.
$10,000 invested December 31, 2023
Year by year
Total return in each calendar year; this year is year to date. A year appears only if SPYU traded for all of it.
Total return on the market price, with each distribution reinvested on its ex-date. Not the NAV return the issuer publishes; the two differ when the ETF trades above or below the value of its holdings. The narrative is the asset-weighted return of the unlevered ETFs that carry it. The market is the asset-weighted return of broad US index ETFs. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
FRI OCT 2MARKET PRICE TOTAL RETURN
How closely it moves
SPYU moves closely with the market. When the market has moved 1%, SPYU has tended to move 3.83%.
SPYU moves closely with pure narrative flow. When pure narrative flow has moved 1%, SPYU has tended to move 1.21%.
Weekly returns over 147 weeks. The narrative is measured without SPYU in it, so it is not compared with itself.
ETFs it moves most and least like
Correlation of weekly returns over the last 3 years, among unlevered ETFs StoryVector covers.
Where it sits in Pure narrative flow
Each dot is one of 7 unlevered ETFs whose main narrative is pure narrative flow, placed by its return (up) and how much it swung (right) over the last year. SPYU is levered or inverse, so it is shown against them but not counted among them.
Risk
How it is built
Seeks 4x the daily return of its exposure. It carries the narrative but does not count toward Share of Narrative, because only unlevered long exposure does.
Narrative exposure
Common questions
What story is SPYU selling?
SPYU’s main story is pure narrative flow, which covers disruptive innovation, online consumers, betting and stocks chosen by social sentiment: where the retail crowd puts its money.
Which ETFs compete with SPYU?
The ETFs whose weekly returns move most like SPYU’s over the past 3 years are VOO (1.00), SPYM (1.00) and SPY (1.00).
How has SPYU performed against its story?
Over the past year SPYU returned +25.7%, the ETFs carrying pure narrative flow −0.4% and broad US ETFs +16.8%, to October 2, 2026. Its weekly returns have a correlation of 0.77 with the story. Past performance only.
Run an ETF in pure narrative flow? StoryVector shows issuers where their ETFs stand against the closest rivals, every week.
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