I’ve made my pick for Paradigm’s $50,000 Trading Challenge.

I’m going with the Direxion Daily META Bull 2X ETF (METU).

This is an ETF that doubles the daily return of Meta Platforms (META).

If META goes up 2% one day, METU goes up 4%.

I’ve historically stayed away from leveraged ETFs like this as they’ve notoriously been poor long-term investments.

However, to win a competition like this, you don’t need a “good” investment in the traditional sense.

You need a setup with real upside and a clear reason to move higher within a very short window.

That’s exactly what I see here.

Here’s how I’m thinking about it.

#1: Meta is One of the Strongest Businesses in the World

Meta owns the ultimate "attention monopoly" with over 4 billion people across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

But the real story in 2026 isn't just the user count. It’s the AI engine underneath.

While other companies are still figuring out how to make money from AI, Meta is already using it in ad targeting and content recommendation.

We’re already seeing the positive impacts of this.

Engagement is improving, conversion rates are rising, and the company is extracting more value from each user.

The financials are reflecting this as well, with earnings expectations continuing to move higher as AI-driven monetization improves.

That’s the foundation I want underneath a leveraged bet.

#2: A Pullback at the Perfect Time

The timing here is just as important as the business itself.

Meta Platforms has pulled back roughly 18% over the past month, pushing its relative strength index (RSI) near oversold territory around 35.

Importantly, this move hasn’t been driven by any meaningful change in the business.

Instead, the selloff appears to be driven by a mix of headlines, macro concerns, and general market noise.

We’ve seen this pattern before with Meta: negative headlines hit → sentiment weakens → the stock overcorrects → then, as the noise fades and fundamentals reassert themselves, the stock rebounds.

That’s the setup I see here.

With the Trading Challenge starting on April 1st, this pullback offers an attractive entry point into a high-quality company.

#3: Earnings Right at the Finish Line

The final piece is the timing of Meta’s earnings.

The company is scheduled to report on Wednesday, April 29th, just as the Trading Challenge is coming to an end.

That gives me a clear catalyst within the exact window I need.

We’ve already seen how powerful earnings results can be.

Last quarter, Meta jumped 11% following earnings, and if the company delivers another strong report, we could see a similar reaction.

Holding METU amplifies these potential returns.

Because METU is a 2x leveraged ETF, a 10% move in META translates into a 20% move in the ETF.

That’s exactly the kind of acceleration I want in a one-month competition.

Other Notable Contenders

While I ultimately landed on METU, there were a few other setups I seriously considered that check many of the same boxes.

Direxion Daily MSFT Bull 2X ETF (MSFU) – An ETF offering leveraged exposure to Microsoft.

The setup is very similar to Meta.

Microsoft is a high-quality, AI-driven business that’s recently pulled back.

Microsoft also reports earnings on April 29th, offering the same perfectly timed catalyst at the end of the challenge.

Defiance Daily Target 2x Long MSTR ETF (MSTX) – A leveraged play on Strategy.

Since Strategy is essentially a leveraged bet on Bitcoin, MSTX becomes leverage on top of leverage.

Any upside in Bitcoin should lead to explosive moves in MSTX.

GraniteShares 2x Long NVDA Daily ETF (NVDL) – This ETF provides leveraged exposure to Nvidia.

This is another similar setup to Meta – a high-quality, AI-driven business that’s recently pulled back.

Nvidia doesn’t report earnings in April, however, so I’d prefer METU here.

I hope this helps.

Good luck.