Pot ETF all ready to roll this week

Roughly two weeks before April 20, investors with a craving for marijuana exposure will have a new instrument to roll into their portfolios.

The first exchange-traded fund with a marijuana focus, the Horizons Medical Marijuana Life Sciences ETF, has been conditionally approved for listing by the Toronto Stock Exchange.

It is scheduled to debut on April 5 under the ticker symbol HMMJ. According to Horizon ETF Management, it will be the first ETF “that offers direct exposure to North American-listed stocks that are involved with medical marijuana bioengineering and production.”

The marijuana industry has seen surging growth of late.

Sales grew 30 percent in 2016, according to Arcview Market Research, and they are expected to triple in four years.

The growth comes as more and more people approve of legalizing marijuana, including for recreational purposes.

In 2016, roughly 60 percent of Americans said they favored the legalization of recreational marijuana, as the industry gained support in invalidating the war on drugs, and seven states voted to legalize pot for recreational or medical use.

“The medical marijuana industry is rapidly growing in North America as legislators allow or consider allowing more legal uses of marijuana and marijuana-related products, particularly medical marijuana usage,” Steve Hawkins, president and co-chief executive officer of Horizons ETFs, said.

“Given the recent high returns generated by medical marijuana companies, investors are clearly attracted to the industry,” Hawkins added.

Other ETF providers have proposed similar funds.

In February, ETF Managers Trust filed paperwork with regulators for the Emerging AgroSphere ETF, which would also focus on medical marijuana companies, as well as ones involved in the production or sale of products derived from hemp.

It wasn’t clear when that fund might receive SEC approval and begin trading, and a representative for ETF Managers said the firm couldn’t comment.