Allianz Investment Management LLC (AllianzIM) serves as an investment manager specializing in buffered outcome exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that provide investors with exposure to large-cap U.S. equities alongside defined downside protection and upside caps. The firm offers a comprehensive suite of U.S. Large Cap Buffer ETFs, including the flagship AllianzIM U.S. Large Cap Buffer20 Jan ETF (JANW), which tracks the performance of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) up to a specified cap rate while targeting a 20% buffer against the first 20% of losses over a 12-month outcome period from January 1 to December 31 annually; similar products cover other months such as JUNW for June-to-May and JULW for July-to-June periods, as well as 10% buffer variants, 6-month options like SIXJ, and allocation strategies including SPBX and SLYX. These actively managed funds primarily hold FLEX options contracts and collateral, with JANW featuring four holdings including SPY call and put options expiring December 31, 2025, and a net expense ratio of 0.74%.
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, AllianzIM operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, leveraging the parent company's risk management expertise to innovate in structured equity solutions for retail and institutional investors seeking to mitigate volatility in U.S. large-cap markets.
In December 2025, AllianzIM announced a major operational shift, transferring primary exchange listings for JANW and approximately 30 other Buffered ETFs from NYSE Arca to Cboe BZX Exchange effective on or about December 22, 2025, alongside renaming JANW to AllianzIM U.S. Large Cap Buffer20 ETF to streamline nomenclature across its Buffer10 and Buffer20 series; these changes maintain unchanged investment objectives, strategies, and management teams led by Thomas Paustian and Josiah Highmark since inception. The firm continues to reset and launch outcome periods annually, with JANW's current period starting January 1, 2025, offering a gross cap of 10.79% and net buffer of 19.26% as of recent data.