If the peace talks between Iran and the US failed so badly over the weekend... then why is the S&P 500 up 1% today?

Because a second round of peace talks is already in the works.

President Trump had this to say: "We've been called by the other side. They'd like to make a deal very badly."

So the market is green again. But here's the thing: we're getting a little tired of watching our portfolios swing up and down with every new headline out of the Gulf.

Some days the ceasefire looks like it'll hold. Some days oil spikes and the Nasdaq drops 2% in an hour. It's exhausting.

So today, we're going to talk about something most investors overlook entirely: high-yield bond ETFs.

Sound boring? Maybe. Most people hear "bonds" and think, "Oh great, 4% a year. No thanks."

What if we told you there's a bond ETF on today's list yielding 12.8%?

And what if we said you don’t have to invest in junk bonds to make a decent yield on bond ETFs?

The reality is that there is no single "best" investment type. Stocks, bonds, index funds, they all serve different roles. You don't go all stocks because the volatility will eat you alive without ballast. You don't go all bonds because you'll never hit the growth targets you need for long-term wealth. The best portfolios have both, and right now, with this much uncertainty, the bond side of the equation deserves a closer look.

We'll break them down below. But first, an opportunity to invest in Nature-Cide’s creator (already in 41+ global markets, but pre-Nasdaq listing):

This is not financial advice. Always do your own research. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.

Med-X is moving toward a possible Nasdaq listing (ticker: MXRX) - and once that happens, the early window closes.

Before Wall Street prices it in, Med-X has already generated $6.4M in sales, placed Nature-Cide on Amazon.com, Walmart.com, and Kroger.com, and begun expanding into 41+ global markets.

Florida's mosquito control districts—America's most well-funded and influential—are independently testing Nature-Cide botanical pesticides, as Med-X pursues WHO pre-qualification for global public health adoption.

This is the gap before the bell.

Review the Med-X opportunity now - before Nasdaq plans unfold. 

Disclosures: This is a paid advertisement for Med-X's Regulation A+ Offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.medx-rx.com

While everyone is refreshing headlines about peace talks and oil prices, bond ETFs are quietly doing what they do best: paying you to wait.

Here are 5 of the highest-yielding bond ETFs on the market right now.

Note: Beta = volatility relative to the S&P 500 index, which has a beta of 1.0. So, anything with lower beta is less volatile than the general stock market.

Yield: 12.79% | Beta: 0.22

HYGW holds a basket of high-yield corporate bonds, then sells covered call options on top of them every month. That options premium is what juices the yield above 12%. The tradeoff is you cap your upside if bonds rally hard, but in a choppy sideways market, that tradeoff looks pretty smart. The 0.22 beta means this thing barely moves compared to the broader market.

Yield: 11.22% | Beta: 0.51

The spiciest pick on the list. CCC-rated bonds are the lowest tier of high-yield debt before you get into outright distressed territory, which is exactly why the yield is over 11%. Think of this as the "high risk, high reward" corner of the bond world. Issuer exposure is capped at 2%, so no single company blowing up can sink the whole fund.

Yield: 8.65% | Beta: 0.46

VEMY gives you access to high-yield bonds from emerging market countries (both government and corporate debt) across Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. EM bonds tend to move on a different cycle than US markets, making this a solid diversifier. It's also actively managed, which matters in emerging markets where picking the right credits is everything.

Yield: 8.52% | Beta: 0.48

High-yield bonds from telecom, media, and tech companies specifically. You're essentially getting paid 8.5% a year to lend money to the same types of companies you're probably already investing in on the equity side. A way to add tech exposure without adding more stock volatility. Lowest expense ratio on the list at 0.35%.

Yield: 7.89% | Beta: 0.19

High-yield bonds from Asia-Pacific companies, all denominated in US dollars (so no currency risk). The headline is the 0.19 beta, the lowest on this list. This ETF essentially ignores what the US stock market is doing. If your goal is pure income with almost zero correlation to the S&P, this is your pick.

You don't have to sit in cash or white-knuckle every headline to stay productive in this market. These 5 ETFs pay between 7.89% and 12.79% annually with a fraction of the volatility you're getting in stocks. Nobody knows if peace talks succeed next week or fall apart again, but these yields show up regardless!

Original movie props and costumes have emerged as a serious alternative asset class, with the entertainment collectibles market surging 34% annually. A light-up C-3PO head from The Empire Strikes Back recently sold for $1,058,400 at auction, representing the only known example on the collector market. Similar rare Star Wars props have commanded even higher prices, with a steel Patek Philippe 1518 fetching $13.9 million.

The market is being driven by improved authentication through blockchain technology, expanded online auction access, and institutional validation from major auction houses creating specialized entertainment memorabilia divisions. Film props and costumes now represent 31% of the celebrity memorabilia market, with institutional-quality pieces appreciating an average of 87% over the past five years. Experts note that items connected to pivotal cultural moments and featuring verified provenance consistently outperform, though they recommend limiting memorabilia to 10-15% of investment portfolios.

Totem is building an offline, wearable “friend-finding” device that helps people locate each other in real time without cell service, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth. Originally popular at music festivals, the product is expanding into families, travel, and everyday use cases where networks fail or get congested.

The company has seen strong early traction, with 50,000+ devices shipped globally and millions of views driven entirely through organic, viral growth. Its core tech is a peer-to-peer mesh network that actually performs better in crowded environments, positioning it as both a consumer safety tool and a broader connectivity platform.

Totem plans to layer in subscriptions, rentals, and enterprise use cases (like festivals and venues), turning a viral hardware product into a recurring revenue business.

See the campaign →

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Cheers,
Brandon & Blake of Invested Inc