NEW YORK (CNNfn) - David Kugler has been a risk-taker since his days as a U.S. Navy pilot, so perhaps it is no surprise that he launched an Internet fund.
"It's all risk management," said Kugler, 39, president of Monument Funds Group in Bethesda, Md.
Assets in Kugler's Monument Internet Fund have soared to $26 million since he started it in November, and the fund is up 130 percent as of Friday year to date, according to fund researcher Morningstar.
The fund gets 600 phone calls a day from interested investors -- including people who have never been on the Internet but realize its power, Kugler said.
"People may say (Internet investing) is a flash in the pan, but I truly think they are wrong," he said. "Anybody who understands anything, understands the power of the Internet."
And Kugler has company. In addition to the Internet Fund, the WWW Internet Fund and the NetNet Fund, three other funds have hit the market or will be available to investors soon.
Unified Select Internet Fund started trading last week, while the AIT Internet Fund will debut May 1.
Another fund in the works is the LCM Internet Growth Fund, a closed-end fund, said Norman Fosback, editor-in-chief of the investment newsletter Mutual-Fund Forecaster.
A closed-end fund has a limited number of shares and trades like stock at a premium or discount of its Net Asset Value (NAV) on the New York Stock Exchange.
Given all of the fascination with Internet-related equities, Fosback said it would be interesting to see if the LCM Internet Growth Fund starts trading at a premium right away.
"It is obviously part of the (Internet) bubble," Fosback said about all of the new funds. "But in general, sector funds are beneficial to investors."
The Monument Internet Fund's top holdings include RealNetworks (RNWK); PSINet (PSIX); America Online (AOL); Ameritrade (AMTD); DoubleClick (DCLK); and CNet (CNET), among others.
Kugler spent 10 years at Merrill Lynch and PaineWebber before starting his own company in January 1997. Before joining Merrill Lynch, he was a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy, flying EA-3B Skywarriors nicknamed "Whales" on and off aircraft carriers.
Kugler does not think the field of Internet funds is too crowded. In fact, he said he is encouraged that big fund families like Fidelity are getting a piece of the action.
He said he was driving in his car recently when he heard an ad on the radio from Peter Lynch of Fidelity recommending some Fidelity select portfolios as a way to invest in Internet stocks.
"I almost drove off the highway when I heard that," Kugler joked. "When Fidelity puts Peter Lynch in advertisements about Internet stocks, that's a good thing…As the Internet becomes more mainstream, it's only going to improve the wealth of those folks who invest."
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