JPMorgan's $1.5 Trillion Security Push Lifts Spotlight On Defense, Critical Minerals And Tech ETFs

JPMorgan Chase & Co‘s (NYSE:JPM) decision to hire Todd Combs, long viewed as a key figure in Berkshire Hathaway Inc’s (NYSE:BRK) succession bench, can spark fresh momentum in investment themes tied to U.S. national security and economic resilience.

And for ETF investors, the bank’s sweeping new Security and Resiliency Initiative (SRI) may offer an early roadmap of sectors positioned for long-duration capital flows.

Combs’ Move Marks A Strategic Pivot, With ETF-Market Implications

Combs will oversee JPMorgan’s $10 billion Strategic Investment Group, a part of SRI’s broader $1.5 trillion commitment to build stronger U.S. manufacturing, critical mineral supply chains, energy systems, healthcare capacity, defense technologies, and frontier innovation.

The long-time Berkshire investment manager and GEICO chief will also advise Jamie Dimon and the bank’s Operating Committee, signaling a decision-making role that blends strategy, capital allocation, and industry engagement.

Shares of Berkshire fell 1.2% on the day, while JPMorgan stock hovered near its 52-week high.

ETF Investors Focus On Sectors Related To SRI Themes

JPMorgan’s move, couched explicitly in U.S. national security and industrial capacity terms, places investor focus on those ETFs exposed to defense, strategic minerals, reshoring, and advanced technology.

Defense & Aerospace ETFs

• iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (BATS:ITA) tracks leading defense contractors including Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE:LMT), Rtx Corp (NYSE:RTX), and General Dynamics Corp (NYSE:GD). With SRI listing defense and aerospace as priority sectors, ITA could see renewed attention as investors position for long-cycle federal spending.

• SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF (NYSE:XAR): XAR’s equal-weight approach emphasizes mid-tier suppliers and manufacturers, firms that are well-positioned to benefit if SRI capital supports production capacity, component manufacturing, and supply-chain expansion.

Critical Mineral & Energy-Security ETFs

• VanEck Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF (NYSE:REMX): Focused on producers of rare earths and strategic minerals, REMX fits squarely into SRI’s emphasis on securing raw materials essential to electronics, clean energy, and defense systems.

• Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (NYSE:LIT) captures the lithium supply chain, from miners to battery manufacturers, a space that increasingly links to U.S. energy independence and industrial resilience.

Manufacturing & Infrastructure ETFs

• Global X U.S. Infrastructure Development ETF (BATS:PAVE) follows companies involved in domestic construction and heavy engineering, providing exposure to industries at the heart of the U.S. manufacturing buildout the SRI aims to accelerate.

• Pacer U.S. Small Cap Cash Cows Growth ETF (BATS:CALF) is not a strict reshoring ETF, but it includes cash-rich smaller manufacturers and industrial players that might indirectly benefit from capacity expansion programs.

SRI as a multi-year capital engine With JPMorgan pairing its investment mandate with a high-profile External Advisory Council, featuring names like Jeff Bezos, Michael Dell, Condoleezza Rice and Paul Nakasone, the initiative is framed as a long-term effort rather than a one-off program.

For ETF investors, the takeaway is, if America’s largest bank is anchoring its next decade of spending around national security, industrial resilience, and technological leadership, the thematic ETFs aligned with those sectors may become increasingly central to how portfolios capture the next major capital wave.

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