European active ETFs attracted $33.9bn of net inflows in the eight months to 31 August 2026, surpassing the previous full-year record of $33.4bn set in 2025.
Fidelity International’s September ETF flows review, based on etfbook data, shows inflows were almost 80% higher than the $19.1bn recorded over the same period last year.
The milestone comes despite a slowdown in monthly subscriptions over the summer. Active ETFs gathered $3.6bn in August, compared with $4.3bn in July and June’s record $6.7bn.
Equity strategies accounted for most of August’s active ETF inflows, attracting $2.8bn, or around 78% of the total. Actively managed bond ETFs gathered a further $600m.
Fidelity attributes the market’s expansion to broader adoption of active and income-focused ETFs, product development and a migration from traditional investment vehicles.
Our view
David Batchelor, senior analyst at QuotedData, said: “Beating the previous full-year inflows record with four months remaining is a notable milestone, even allowing for the slower pace over the summer.
We would not, however, interpret this simply as investors choosing active management over passive investing. Some of the money may be moving from conventional actively managed funds into ETFs, rather than away from trackers. The figures do not tell us how much, but the distinction matters. An investor can remain committed to active management while changing how they access it, or use an active ETF alongside passive holdings to address a particular investment need”.
For us, the most promising implication is the potential for greater competition within active management itself. As investors have more ways to access managers’ expertise, providers will need to make a clearer case for both their approach and their charges. That could be particularly useful where an ETF offers a similar strategy to a conventional fund at a lower cost, although comparisons need to account for dealing costs and platform charges too”.