Yes, and SPY is the monster ETF that it is because there is no funny business and it tracks the index the old fashioned way by actually holding the securities.

Yes, and SPY is the monster ETF that it is because there is no funny business and it tracks the index the old fashioned way by actually holding the securities. Broker dealers can trade in a basket of securities for new shares of SPY and vice versa which keeps it very close to perfectly tracking the index.