Explosive rallies happen in even the worst bear markets, and these funds move just as fast the wrong way. A sudden 15% advance could drain away nearly half of the miserably few dollars you've got left at this point if you have them in a leveraged short fund.
But if you think we ain't seen nothing yet, you stand to make a killing while the rest of us are sucked into poverty. You can make a buck -- or two or three -- for every dollar the guy on the long side loses.
You probably can't access these short funds from your 401(k), unless it has a mutual fund window that allows you to buy any fund. But you can buy the funds from any straight brokerage account, whether taxable or tax-deferred (such as an IRA).
It's much easier to buy these funds than to short individual stocks. See " for details on that.
There are scores of short ETFs and a handful of mutual funds to consider. Gains in the range of 60% in little more than two months are common with the leveraged versions. Direxion Financial Bear 3X Shares had galloped ahead 179% so far this year, as of March 5.
Still, leverage adds rocket fuel to what's already a roller-coaster ride, so laying down a bet like this more closely resembles assisted suicide than a search for safety. You cannot watch these positions too closely.
There's also a lot of concern on Wall Street right now that the growth of such funds is helping keep the market down. That may be true, though a cynic might wonder if Wall Street isn't simply upset that we've caught on to a game the pros have been playing for quite a while.