"BPAY: A $9 Million ETF That Owns Beaten-Down Fintechs, But Probably Shouldn't Be Your Entry"

The fintech sector has been savaged in 2026. SoFi, the poster child for growth-fintech optimism, is down roughly 35% year-to-date despite delivering 40.7% revenue growth and beating Q1 earnings. The iShares FinTech Active ETF (BPAY) is down about 13% on the year, trading near the middle of its $21-$34 range.

On the surface, that kind of disconnect - stocks tanking while fundamentals accelerate - is exactly the setup this framework looks for. The problem is that BPAY isn't a vehicle. It's a $8.67 million micro-fund with structural problems of its own. The question isn't whether the underlying fintech names are cheap. It's whether this ETF is the way to buy them.

The underlying math actually works on the individual names.

SoFi reported $1.09 billion in Q1 2026 revenue - up 42.6% year-over-year - and beat earnings for the quarter. The stock dropped roughly 14% the week after the report. The disconnect between execution and price action is stark. SoFi trades at 65 times forward earnings, which is rich on an absolute basis, but the company's 40%+ revenue growth and path to scaled profitability make the multiple compressible if the market stops pricing it like a failed startup.