The first day of trading for ARK Invest's new socially focused fund, which was launched by star stock picker Cathie Wood, saw the fund rise 1.5 percent.

The ARK Transparency ETF CTRU.K, which the firm claims will focus on the "100 most transparent companies in the world," gained ground in addition to the strength of top holdings such as Tesla Inc TSLA.O and Maxlinear Inc MXL.N. The ARK Transparency ETF CTRU.K, which the firm claims will focus on the "100 most transparent companies in the world," gained ground in addition to the strength of top holdings such as Tesla Inc TSLA.O and Max In addition to the gains made by individual stocks, the broad S&P 500 index gained 0.3 percent for the session.

Its new fund comes as its flagship ARK InnovationARKK.K fund is down 17 percent for the year to date, according to data from Morningstar. Because of its bet on technology companies that rallied during the early stages of the pandemic, the $17.2 billion fund outperformed all other U.S. equity funds last year, contributing to Woods becoming a household name among retail investors.

The portfolio of the ARK Transparency fund retains a strong technology focus, with seven of the fund's ten largest holdings being associated with the sector. Its largest holdings outside of technology include retailers Buckle Inc BKE.N and Bloom Energy Corp BE.N, which is involved in green energy.