Taiwan stocks hit another record high, driving a surge in active ETFs. What’s the difference between 00403A starting subscriptions and 00981A?

As the Taiwan stock market continues to set new all-time highs, a recent surge in the issuance of “active ETFs” has swept into Taiwan’s capital markets. Among them, a new product launched by Uni-President Asset Management has attracted particular attention. The “00403A Uni-President Taiwan Stock Upgrade 50 Active ETF” will be open for subscriptions from April 22, 2026, to April 24, 2026, with an offering price of 10 New Taiwan Dollars per unit. Whether it can match the strong performance of 00981A (Active Uni-President Taiwan Stock Growth), also from Uni-President Asset Management, whose one-year return rate reached as high as 172%, has drawn intense market attention.

What is an active ETF? Why has it recently become a hot trend in Taiwan?

An active ETF (Active ETF) differs from the traditional model that passively tracks an index. Its core is that fund managers dynamically adjust the underlying holdings and weights based on the macroeconomic environment, industry trends, and company fundamentals. This mechanism provides greater flexibility in operations, aiming to pursue “excess returns” that outperform the broader market. The main reason it has sparked a boom in Taiwan recently is that Taiwan stocks are highly concentrated in the semiconductor and technology sectors. In a market environment characterized by high-level volatility, traditional passive ETFs may be constrained by index construction rules and may not be able to promptly remove companies whose growth momentum is slowing. Through professional stock-picking logic, active ETFs can respond to market changes more quickly, meeting today’s investors’ expectations for flexible asset allocation.

00403A product structure: how is it different from 0050?

The “00403A Uni-President Taiwan Stock Upgrade 50 Active ETF” is positioned by the market as an upgraded version of a market-cap ETF. Compared with “0050,” which passively and consistently tracks the top 50 largest companies by market cap in Taiwan, 00403A adopts a dual-layer strategy of “core and enhancement.” Its core allocation still centers on the top 50 largest market-cap companies, but the manager will proactively remove individual stocks whose competitiveness is declining. At the same time, through enhanced allocation, the eligible stock selection universe is expanded to mid- and large-cap companies ranked from 51 to 200 by market cap, in order to find underlying assets with the potential to rise into the front ranks. In addition, 00403A’s single holding cap can reach 30%, giving the manager room to overweight leading stocks. However, its management fee rate falls between 1.0% and 1.2%, which is higher than that of most passive ETFs; investors need to factor in embedded costs.

The currently estimated holdings list for 00403A includes TSMC, Powertech-KY, Qishig, Delta Electronics, and Chuanlian, among others, focusing on the semiconductor and AI supply chain with the strongest competitive advantages in Taiwan stocks.

Introduction to team members and subscription methods

The long-term performance of an active ETF depends highly on the professional analysis and judgment of the management team. 00403A is issued by Uni-President Asset Management, and it is led by manager Zhang Zhewei, who has experience such as the “Uni-President Grand Slam Fund” and the “Uni-President Taiwan Momentum Fund.” The team has a style geared toward steady outperformance, focusing on quality and momentum within large-cap stocks, and centering on the long-term trends of the AI and semiconductor industry supply chain.

Regarding subscription methods, 00403A is expected to open for subscriptions from April 22, 2026, to April 24, 2026, with an offering price of 10 New Taiwan Dollars per unit, making it a relatively approachable investment threshold. Investors can subscribe directly online, or after listing, buy and sell directly on the centralized market.

Investment strategy comparison: how should you choose versus 00981A?

As an active ETF from Uni-President Asset Management, 00981A (Active Uni-President Taiwan Stock Growth) has recently delivered strong performance, with a one-year return rate as high as 172%, drawing intense market attention.

Investors often face a choice between 00403A and 00981A. The two core differences lie in the “investment style” and the “stock selection universe.” 00981A covers the top 300 largest companies by market cap, and it is managed by a team with a more aggressive style that emphasizes finding technology stocks with high breakout potential. By contrast, 00403A uses large-cap and high-weight stocks as its defensive core, and supplements them with mid- and large-cap high-potential stocks for an offensive posture—making its overall style relatively steady. If investors pursue extreme technology growth momentum, they may consider 00981A. If investors prefer to build on large-cap stocks and seek returns superior to the broader market with a relatively moderate risk tolerance, then 00403A is a more fitting allocation option.

This article “Taiwan stocks hit another record high driving the active ETF boom; 00403A begins subscriptions—how is it different from 00981A?” first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.