Direxion hires ex-NYSE leaders to expand ETF lineup
Direxion named former NYSE executives Douglas Yones CEO, Mo Sparks chief product officer and Bilal Little global ETF strategist to grow its ETF products and overseas distribution.
Direxion has appointed three former New York Stock Exchange executives to its leadership team: Douglas Yones as chief executive officer, Mo Sparks as chief product officer and Bilal Little as global ETF strategist. Yones joined the firm in late 2024; Sparks arrived less than five months later and Little was named recently.
Rafferty Holdings, Direxion’s parent company, cited Yones’s more than a decade leading exchange-traded product efforts at the NYSE as a key reason for the hire and to guide the firm’s strategy and growth.
Sparks was hired from the NYSE to direct product strategy and oversee new offerings. His responsibilities include shaping product development and adapting the firm’s lineup to investor demand.
Little, who previously led ETF market development at the NYSE, will focus on expanding global distribution, educating institutional clients and growing Direxion’s thematic and leveraged product suites.
Since Yones’s arrival, Direxion has broadened its retail-facing product slate, adding single-stock exchange-traded funds alongside its existing leveraged and inverse strategies. The firm has described the hires as part of an effort to accelerate product development and strengthen sales and distribution both domestically and abroad.
Executives moving from major exchange platforms to ETF issuers is common in the industry, given the technical knowledge needed to design, list and market exchange-traded products. Direxion’s new leadership brings experience in listing mechanics, market structure and distribution channels.
The firm has acknowledged regulatory, operational and market risks tied to leveraged and single-stock ETFs, including liquidity constraints and tracking differences. Direxion has framed the new appointments as steps to manage those factors while broadening access to its products.
The three hires reflect a concentrated recruitment from the NYSE over a period beginning late 2024 and continuing into 2025, as Direxion expands its product roster and distribution reach.
