Leveraged DraftKings ETF Closing After Just Seven Months on the Market

  • The leveraged ETF surprisingly failed to gain a following
  • It has just $492,800 in assets under management
  • It will be shuttered in March

One of the first leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) focusing exclusively on DraftKings (NASDAQ: DKNG) is heading to the ETF graveyard.

DraftKings, problem gambling, online sports betting, New Jersey lawsuit, gambling addiction
A leveraged ETF tied to DraftKings stock is shutting down. (Image: Shutterstock/DraftKings/Casino.org)

In a Monday statement, Tuttle Capital Management, the company behind the REX Shares suite of ETFs, said it’s shuttering the T-REX 2X Long DKNG Daily Target ETF (CBOE: DKUP) next month. That fund, which debuted on July 31, 2025, is designed to deliver to 200% of the daily price movements of DraftKings stock. The firm is also shuttering the T-Rex 2X Long BULL Daily Target ETF (CBOE: BULU).

The Funds will cease trading on the Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc and will be closed to purchases by investors as of the close of regular tradingon March 16, 2026,” according to a statement. “The Funds will not accept purchase orders after the Closing Date. Shareholders may sell their shares in the Funds through the Closing Date, and customary brokerage charges may apply to these transactions. The Funds cannot assure shareholders that there will be a market for their Fund shares after the Closing Date. The Funds are expected to liquidate on March 23, 2026.”

Webull (NASDAQ: BULL), the stock tied to the BULU ETF, isn’t a gaming company, but it is a brokerage firm popular with retail investors and one with exposure to the prediction markets industry through a partnership with Kalshi.

Is It Surprising DKUP Didn’t Make It?

A case can be made that DKUP’s death is somewhat surprising when considering DraftKings has a large retail investor base and it is those market participants that often embrace leveraged ETFs.

On the other hand, many of those market participants often make the mistake of holding geared ETFs for more than a few days, potentially exposing themselves to large losses if the underlying stock declines.

That’s been a problem with DraftKings as the shares are off 52.53% over the past six months, and that’s been bad news for DKUP as that geared ETF has shed 79.42% of its value since coming to market.

Limited Appetite for DraftKings ETFs

In recent years, single-stock ETFs have become increasingly popular due, in part, to the wide embrace among active retail traders – many of whom are also sports bettors and/or trading on prediction markets. Six single-stock ETFs have north of $1 billion in assets under management, and another one is flirting with that distinction.

However, that success hasn’t matriculated to DraftKings-related ETFs, and the pending death of DKUP confirms as much.

Add to that, the Defiance Daily Target 2X Long DKNG ETF (NASDAQ: DKNX), which is DKUP’s nearest rival, has just $3.95 million in assets under management. Like DKUP, the Defiance ETF is about seven months old.

Todd Shriber
Todd Shriber Financial Reporter

Todd Shriber is a senior news reporter covering gaming financials, casino business, stocks, and mergers and acquisitions for Casino.org.

Todd got his start in financial markets as a reporter with Bloomberg News. Later, he became a trader at a Southern California-based long/short hedge fund, where he specialized in the trading sector and international ETFs leading up to and during the financial crisis. He joined Casino.org in 2019.

Currently, Todd analyzes, researches, and writes on ETFs for various web-based publications and financial services firms. Shriber has been featured and quoted in Barron's, CNBC.com, and The Wall Street Journal. His work can also be found on Benzinga, ETF Daily News, ETF Trends, MarketWatch, Fox Business, and Nasdaq.com.

He currently resides in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golf and taking his black lab to the dog park. He's also an avid sports fan and likes to wager on college football and the NBA. You can also find him at the three-card poker and roulette table, even though he knows better.

Contact Todd at todd.shriber@casino.org.

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    Andrew February 26, 2026
    This ETF closure isn't surprising at all. Holding options directly is a much more economical and customizeable way to gain leveraged exposure to a… This ETF closure isn't surprising at all. Holding options directly is a much more economical and customizeable way to gain leveraged exposure to a single stock than buying a leveraged single-stock ETF - especially if you want to hold the position for more than a single day. Holding a stock's options directly also avoids the loss compounding issue inherent to leveraged ETFs that is mentioned in this article.
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