Active ETF Assets Reach $974B Record in July

Active ETFs listed globally reached a new milestone in July, with assets under management climbing to $974.3 billion, according to data from London-based ETFGI, an independent research and consultancy firm.

The record-breaking figure represents a 32% increase in assets year-to-date, up from $739.9 billion at the end of 2023. In July, actively managed ETFs gathered net inflows of $35.9 billion, bringing year-to-date net inflows to $189.9 billion. It marks the highest year-to-date inflow on record, surpassing the previous high of $86.1 billion set in 2023, ETFGI said.

While the vast majority of ETF assets are in passive, index-style funds, active ETFs' assets have grown faster as price wars have pushed management fees lower and investors seek to top benchmarks such as the S&P 500. Issuers are also customizing funds to meet specialized needs, leading to a wider range of products that draw flows, etf.com research lead Kent Thune said. Market uncertainty is also helping, he said.

"Passive ETFs tend to outperform in stable markets, whereas active management can outperform in volatile, uncertain market conditions," he said. Thune added that active funds are picking up money flowing out of mutual funds.     

Active ETF Growth Outpaces Previous Years

The growth in active ETFs has been strong in equity and fixed income categories. According to ETFGI, equity-focused actively managed ETFs listed globally attracted net inflows of $19.4 billion during July.

This pushed year-to-date net inflows to $108.5 billion. The figure is nearly double the $58 billion in net inflows seen during the same period in 2023.

Source: ETFGI

Fixed income active ETFs have also seen robust growth. They recorded net inflows of $14.6 billion in July and year-to-date net inflows of $69.1 billion. This represents an increase from the $27.4 billion in net inflows recorded during the same period last year.

The top 20 actively managed ETFs by net new assets collectively gathered $13.4 billion during July. The Magellan Global Fund/Open Class (MGOC AU) led with the largest individual net inflow of $1.6 billion, followed by the Capital Group Municipal Income ETF (CGMU) with $1.3 billion.

As of July, there were 2,761 actively managed ETFs listed globally. These funds had 3,421 listings from 461 providers across 37 exchanges in 29 counties.

The news comes following another record-breaking month for ETF launches. According to ETFGI data, ETF issuers introduced 1,063 new ETFs in the first seven months of 2024.

This surpasses the previous record of 988 set over the same period in 2021. The United States led with 363 new funds, followed closely by the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan) with 341, and Europe with 171.

ETFGI's managing partner Deborah Fuhr is a member of etf.com's editorial advisory board.