HANetf launches Europe’s first pureplay drones UCITS ETF

March 2026, London

HANetf, Europe’s first and leading white-label UCITS ETF and ETC platform,[1] is delighted to announce the launch of Drone UCITS ETF (ticker: DRON), which is designed to provide investors with exposure to global companies engaged in the development, production, or operation of drones and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technologies.

Drone UCITS ETF

ISIN: IE0003XW12I8
TER: 0.69%

In recent years, drones have moved from niche to mainstream. While their role in modern warfare has captured global attention, the growth story extends far beyond defence. Unmanned systems are increasingly used across public safety, logistics, agriculture, and industrial operations as share buybacks, tender offers or restructurings – which can help narrow discounts over time.

Over the next decade, it is projected that the global UAV drone market will grow 16.77% annually, taking the market to roughly $209.91 billion.[2]

Today, the largest market is defence. But the civil drone market is also growing apace. The civil UAS market is forecast to grow from $10.1 billion in 2024 to $20.6 billion by 2033, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 6.8%.[3] The commercial UAS market alone is expected to reach $9.5 billion by 2028, with civil applications anticipated to grow faster than military demand.^[4]

The drone growth story rests on three structural pillars. First, military and defence. Unmanned systems are now central to modern military doctrine. Second, civil government and public safety, including border surveillance, disaster response, infrastructure monitoring and emergency services. Third, commercial and industrial adoption, spanning agriculture and industrial surveillance.

The ETF tracks the VettaFi Drone UCITS Index, which is designed to capture companies materially exposed to the development, manufacture, and enabling technologies of unmanned aerial systems. Unlike broad aerospace or defence indices, the methodology differentiates between pureplay drone companies and diversified incumbents.

Peter Diel, Head of Index Product, Europe at VettaFi, commented: « Autonomous systems deliver a real asymmetric advantage across a multitude of sectors, driving increased demand in areas ranging from supply chain optimization, entertainment and consumer products to fast-growing defense and security applications. We are thrilled to partner with HANetf to bring this highly focused, innovative investment opportunity to the UCITS market. »

Tom Bailey, Head of Research at HANetf, commented: “Over the past few years, drones have come to dominate the battlefield in Ukraine and global defence spending is changing to reflect this.

“The United States has launched a $1 billion ‘Drone Dominance’ initiative, Germany plans to field more than 8,000 unmanned systems by 2029, and the UK has committed an additional £2 billion to drone capabilities.[5]

“But defence is only one of the three growth pillars. Governments are increasingly deploying drones for disaster relief, border security and infrastructure monitoring. At the same time, as hardware costs fall and autonomy improves, commercial applications are expanding rapidly. Commercial drone use is expected to grow faster than military demand over the coming decade, with adoption accelerating across construction, industrial inspection, agriculture and logistics, where drones offer detailed surveillance and lower-cost transportation solutions.

“The drone investment theme is not a derivative of the defence spending boom but reflects the broader integration of unmanned aviation systems across military, civil and commercial activities.”

Key Risks

• Thematic ETFs are exposed to a limited number of sectors and thus the investment will be concentrated and may experience high volatility.
• When you invest in ETFs, your capital is fully at risk and may not get back the amount originally invested.
• Exchange rates can have a positive or negative effect on returns.
• Drone and UAV companies are closely tied to the economic fortunes of such companies’ research, design, manufacture, operation, or enabling technologies of drones and other unmanned aerial systems.
• The market for drone and UAV-related products and services is nascent, highly competitive, and characterized by rapid technological change, evolving regulatory frameworks, and heightened geopolitical sensitivities.
• Drone and UAV companies may derive a significant portion of their revenue from supplying drones, sub-assemblies, sensors, or software to military or intelligence customers. As a result, their financial performance is heavily dependent on national defence budgets, foreign-military-sales approvals, and shifting geopolitical priorities, any of which can be affected by changes in administrations, governmental funding allocations, multilateral treaty obligations, or fiscal austerity measures.
• Military-focused drone and UAV companies are also exposed to strict export-control regimes, heightened sanctions risks, and enhanced compliance obligations under anticorruption, anti-boycott, and anti-money laundering laws; violations or compliance failures can result in substantial fines, loss of export privileges, or debarment from future government contracts.

[1] As shown in the ETF Database.

[2] Source: Precedence Research, 15.01.2026.

[3] GSBR Research, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Industry Report, February 2026, www.gsbresearch.com

[4] GSBR Research, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Industry Report, February 2026, www.gsbresearch.com

[5] https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/06/unleashing-american-drone-dominance/; https://thedefensepost.com/2025/08/18/germany-drone-goal-2029/; https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/jun/02/uk-to-invest-2bn-in-drones-to-make-army-10-times-more-lethal.