[Weekend Money] "Include This Hybrid ETF in Your Retirement Pension Account"

ETF Investments Continue to Expand in Retirement Pensions
Hybrid ETFs Gaining Popularity for Higher Equity Allocation

Recently, as investments in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) within retirement pension accounts have been increasing, there is growing interest in hybrid ETFs among aggressive investors seeking to maximize their equity allocation.

According to NH Investment & Securities, domestic retirement pension reserves reached 497 trillion won as of the end of 2025, growing at an average annual rate of 15%. In particular, the utilization of ETFs within retirement pensions is also increasing, especially among securities firms.

Ha Jaeseok, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, explained, “Under current regulations, at least 30% of retirement pension accounts must be invested in safe assets. Investors using ETFs are utilizing hybrid ETFs for this 30% safe asset portion,” adding, “Since 2024, the total net assets of qualified hybrid ETFs classified as safe assets have surged.”

Hybrid ETFs classified as safe assets include: ▲Domestic equity hybrid (domestic stocks + bonds), ▲U.S. equity hybrid (U.S. stocks + bonds), ▲Single stock hybrid (individual stock + bonds), ▲Alternative investments + bonds, and ▲Asset allocation types. The equity allocation is around 30-50% for domestic equity hybrids, 50% for U.S. equity hybrids, and 30% for single stock hybrids. The bond portfolios are mainly comprised of domestic short-term bonds, although some invest in U.S. long-term bonds.

Domestic equity hybrid ETFs invest 30-50% in domestic stocks, and depending on the stock portfolio, can be classified as either diversified or concentrated types. Ha noted, “Representative diversified types include KODEX 200 U.S. Treasury Hybrid and PLUS High Dividend Stock Bond Hybrid. Notably, KODEX 200 U.S. Treasury Hybrid invests in U.S. Treasuries, unlike other ETFs.” He added, “Among concentrated types, mixed ETFs that focus on Samsung Electronics and SK hynix—such as KODEX Samsung Electronics Bond Hybrid, RISE Samsung Electronics SK hynix Bond Hybrid, and KODEX Samsung Electronics SK hynix Bond Hybrid—are gaining popularity.” He further mentioned, “For KODEX 200 U.S. Treasury Hybrid, which invests in U.S. long-term bonds, the bond portfolio may exhibit relatively high volatility.”

Recently, with the government’s KOSDAQ revitalization policy, bond hybrid ETFs investing in KOSDAQ, where stock prices are expected to rise, have also emerged. The 1Q KOSDAQ150 Bond Hybrid 50 Active, listed on April 28, allocates 50% each to the KOSDAQ 150 index and domestic short-term bonds.

U.S. equity hybrid ETFs invest 50% in major indices such as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, or focus on dividend stocks and technology stocks. The bond portfolios are divided into those investing in U.S. short-term bonds and those investing in domestic short-term bonds. Ha commented, “From a portfolio stability perspective, investing in U.S. equity + domestic bond hybrid ETFs—which combine dollar and won assets to reduce currency volatility risk—can be effective.”

Among hybrid ETFs, there are also products that use portfolios of U.S. technology stocks favored by domestic individual investors, such as Tesla and Nvidia, either as single stocks or single-stock covered calls. These products allocate 30% to individual stocks or single-stock covered calls and 70% to domestic bonds. There are also hybrid ETFs that combine alternative assets and bonds; PLUS Gold Bond Hybrid invests 50% each in a U.S.-listed gold spot ETF and a 3-year government bond. TIGER REITs Real Estate Infrastructure TOP10 Bond Hybrid Active allocates 50% to domestic REITs and Macquarie Infrastructure, and 50% to short-term bonds.

There is also rising demand for asset allocation hybrid ETFs, centered around target date funds (TDFs) that allocate investments across various assets. The largest such funds—TIGER TDF2045 Qualified and KODEX TDF2050 Active Qualified—have equity allocations exceeding 70%. This reflects investors’ preference for asset allocation hybrid ETFs with a high equity proportion.

Ha concluded, “In summary, hybrid ETFs with high equity allocations and domestic short-term bond investments are the most effective in terms of profitability and stability.” He cited PLUS High Dividend Stock Bond Hybrid and RISE Samsung Electronics SK hynix Bond Hybrid 50 as representative domestic equity hybrid ETFs.

He added, “For U.S. equity hybrid ETFs, active ETFs have generally outperformed.” He named TIME U.S. Nasdaq 100 Bond Hybrid 50 Active and KoAct U.S. Nasdaq Bond Hybrid 50 Active as U.S. equity hybrid ETFs that pursue higher profitability through active management.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.