Assets invested in actively managed ETFs globally reached a new record of $974.29 billion at the end of July 2024, according to ETF research firm ETFGI.
This milestone surpassed the previous record of $923.22 billion set in June, marking a significant achievement in the rapidly growing actively managed ETF sector.
The surge in assets was accompanied by robust net inflows, with actively managed ETFs gathering $35.92 billion in July alone. These inflows have brought the year-to-date (YTD) net inflows to $189.96 billion, the highest on record. This figure eclipses the previous YTD records of $86.12 billion in 2023 and $85.25 billion in 2021, highlighting the increasing investor appetite for actively managed ETF products.
Year-to-date, assets in actively managed ETFs have grown by 31.7%, rising from $739.87 billion at the end of 2023 to the current $974.29 billion. This growth marked the 52nd consecutive month of net inflows, underscoring the consistent demand for these investment vehicles.
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Equity-focused actively managed ETFs were the primary drivers of this growth, attracting $19.37 billion in net inflows during July. This brings the YTD net inflows for equity-focused ETFs to $108.52 billion, nearly double the $58.01 billion recorded in the same period in 2023. Fixed income-focused ETFs also performed strongly, with $14.57 billion in net inflows during July, pushing the YTD total to $69.12 billion, compared to $27.44 billion in 2023.
The substantial inflows were concentrated in the top 20 actively managed ETFs by net new assets, which collectively gathered $13.42 billion in July. The Magellan Global Fund/Open Class led the pack, securing $1.64 billion in net inflows, the largest individual inflow for the month.
“The S&P 500 index increased by 1.22% in July and is up 16.70% YTD in 2024. The developed markets excluding the US index increased by 3.37% in July and is up 8.12% YTD in 2024. Ireland and Belgium saw the largest decreases amongst the developed markets in July. The emerging markets index increased by 0.57% during July and is up 8.70% YTD in 2024. Greece and UAE saw the largest increases amongst emerging markets in July,” said Deborah Fuhr, managing partner, founder and owner of ETFGI.