San Francisco-based Corgi Funds has launched 188 ETFs since December and filed for 550 total, threatening to surpass BlackRock's 488 US offerings. Despite less than $1bn in assets and just 10 fund employees, the venture-backed disruptor aims to undercut incumbents on fees and capture retail investors via social media distribution.

Founded in 2024 by Nico Laqua and Emily Yuan — former gaming entrepreneurs behind Basket Entertainment — Corgi's parent operates as an "AI-native" insurance platform. The company raised $160mn at a $1.3bn valuation in May, then $106mn more at a $2.6bn valuation weeks later, claiming profitability and plans to expand into trucking and sports verticals.

Corgi's ETF suite leans heavily into thematic tickers like GLAM (beauty), BREW (coffee), and ODDZ (sports betting), though its $485mn EUV semiconductor fund shows early traction. Fees are aggressively priced: leveraged ETFs at 0.2–0.45% versus 0.9% rivals, buffer ETFs at 0.3% versus 0.8%, and Treasury ETFs at 0.05% undercutting BlackRock and State Street.

Industry veterans call the strategy a "flawed experiment" or "great idea," noting cheap products need distribution to reach the ~$50mn break-even threshold. Corgi bets its AI-lean model and retail focus will rewrite the rules.