In 2016, assets in the global ETF/ETP industry reached a record high of $3.5trn, passing the previous record of $3.4trn at the end of November, according to a statement from research and consultancy firm ETFGI.
The US, which also hit a record high last year, represents the largest share of the global industry with $2.5trn in assets. Other regions that reached a new high include Europe ($571bn) and Canada ($84bn).
As global ETF issuances increased, capital flows into actively-managed funds have fallen, according to a previous Moody’s report.
“Active management performance after fees continues to underwhelm,” Neal Epstien, vice president and senior credit officer at Moody’s said in the report. “Investors are remaining cost-conscious as scepticism of active management’s value proposition increases.”
Record net inflows
At the end of 2016, there were 6,625 ETF/ETPs globally, with 12,526 listings from 290 providers listed on 65 exchanges in 53 countries, according to the ETFGI statement.
The industry as a whole also gathered a record amount of net inflows of $389.3bn last year, surpassing the $372.3bn recorded in 2015.
From an international perspective, equity ETF/ETPs registered the largest net inflows last year, followed by fixed income and commodity.
| Asset class | 2016 net inflows | Previous record high |
| Equities | $231.9bn | $258.21bn in 2015 |
| Fixed income | $111.58bn* | $81.65bn in 2014 |
| Commodity | $30.85bn* | $23.44bn in 2012 |
Source: ETFGI, * indicates new record high
IShares gathered the largest net ETF/ETP inflows in 2016 ($138.4bn), followed by Vanguard ($96.8bn) and SPDR ETFs ($62.5bn), according to ETFGI.
