Taiwan's longest-running electronics and technology ETF, 0053, is preparing to cut its share price from more than NT$200 back to around NT$30 — good news for small investors, but bad news for those looking to collect cash dividends.

• 0053's net asset value has risen from NT$30 at its launch in 2007 to NT$225, meaning one lot costs more than NT$200,000 — too high a threshold.
• If the split is approved, the number of lots held will increase and net asset value per unit will fall, while total market value stays the same, bringing the cost of one lot down to about NT$30,000.
• A vote will also be held on halting dividend payments, so that corporate dividends received will be retained entirely within the net asset value to pursue a compounding strategy — but the annual cash flow from dividends will disappear.
• The total market capitalisation of Taiwan's electronics sector has surged from NT$14 trillion at the end of 2016 to break past NT$120 trillion at one point, driven by contract manufacturing, semiconductors and the AI hardware supply chain.
• The risk is that the fund is entirely invested in Taiwanese electronics stocks, leaving it overly concentrated in a single sector, with no other industries to cushion a sharp decline in any given year.

Outlook: Electronic voting runs from September 16 to October 5, and the beneficiaries' meeting on October 8 will set the split ratio based on that day's net asset value, with the split process beginning once it is approved.