VEXC Wins Best New International Equity ETF
With more investor attention on opportunities overseas, the Best New International Equity ETF was a closely watched category. The Vanguard Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (VEXC) took home the win, proof that affordability still matters most.
2026 ETF.com Best New International Equity ETF
Fund: Vanguard Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (VEXC)
Issuer: Vanguard
Asset Class: Equity
AUM: $195 million
Expense Ratio: 0.07%
The Vanguard Emerging Markets Ex-China ETF (VEXC) won Best New International Equity ETF of the 2026 ETF.com awards. The fund offers passive exposure to large- and mid-cap emerging market stocks while excluding China. It does so by seeking to track the FTSE Emerging ex China Index. The fund also works to balance the impacts that its investments have on the inherently smaller emerging market stocks, limiting voting rights to 10% of securities owned for individual issuers and curtailing total assets of VEXC to 5% in an issuer's stocks (except when approximating the FTSE Emerging ex China Index). Both stipulations apply to 75% of total assets.
Ongoing trade tensions with China through much of 2025 prompted many U.S. investors to minimize their exposures to China in an effort to derisk portfolios. VEXC is now the cheapest ETF to invest in emerging markets ex-China at just 7 basis points and proved popular with investors. The fund currently offers notable exposure to Taiwan and India, two growth engines of the global economy.
Vanguard's low cost approach to investing continues to net it wins with investors. The firm also took home Best New International Fixed Income ETF this year with the Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond ETF (VGMS), as well as the Best New U.S. Equity ETF with the Vanguard Wellington US Value Active ETF (VUSV), a lower cost active approach to value investing. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) won ETF of the Year last year at the 2025 ETF.com awards.
All data sourced as of 03/09/26.
To see the full list of winners, go here.
