ETFGI reports that assets invested in the ETFs industry in Canada reached a new record high of US$512.15 billion at the end of August

Press Release

LONDON — September 12, 2025 — ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm renowned for its expertise in subscription research, consulting services, events, and ETF TV on global ETF industry trends, reported today that assets invested in the ETFs industry in Canada reached a new record of US$512.15 billion at the end of August. During August the ETFs industry in Canada gathered net inflows of US$6.95 billion, bringing year-to-date net inflows to US$63.19 billion, according to ETFGI's August 2025 Canadian ETFs and ETPs industry landscape insights report, the monthly report which is part of an annual paid-for research subscription service. (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.) 

ETF Industry in Canada Highlights – August 2025

  • Record AUM: Assets invested in the Canadian ETF industry reached a new all-time high of $512.15 billion at the end of August 2025, surpassing the previous record of $491.69 billion set in July 2025.
  • Strong YTD Growth: Assets have grown 29.0% year-to-date, rising from $397.15 billion at the end of 2024 to $512.15 billion.
  • August Inflows: Net inflows totalled $6.95 billion in August 2025.
  • Record YTD Inflows: Year-to-date net inflows of $63.19 billion mark the highest on record, exceeding the previous highs of $36.62 billion in 2024 and $32.72 billion in 2021.
  • Consistent Demand: August marked the 38th consecutive month of net inflows.
  • Equity ETF Leadership: Equity ETFs and ETPs listed in Canada have attracted $22.31 billion in YTD net inflows in 2025.

“The S&P 500 index rose 2.03% in August, bringing its year-to-date gain to 10.79%. Developed markets excluding the US index advanced 4.29% during the month, and are now up 24.56% year-to-date. Among developed markets, Denmark (+6.37%) and Japan (+6.24%) experienced the largest declines in August. Emerging markets index posted a 2.48% gain in August, with year-to-date performance reaching +16.04%. Chile (+9.63%) and Brazil (+8.46%) led the gains among emerging markets during the month.” According to Deborah Fuhr, managing partner, founder, and owner of ETFGI.

Growth in assets in the ETFs industry in Canada as of the end of August

The Canadian ETF industry had 1,425 ETFs, with 1,782 listings, assets of US$512.15 Bn, from 45 providers on 2 exchanges at the end of August. 

ETF Industry in Canada net inflows - August 2025
During August, ETFs in Canada gathered net inflows of $6.95 billion.

Equity ETFs attracted $2.41 billion in net inflows during the month, bringing year-to-date (YTD) net inflows to $22.31 billion, surpassing the $15.45 billion gathered by the end of August 2024.

Fixed Income ETFs saw $867.56 million in net inflows in August, with YTD net inflows reaching $8.15 billion, ahead of the $6.65 billion recorded by the same time last year.

Active ETFs reported strong demand, gathering $3.24 billion in August and pushing YTD net inflows to $30.49 billion, more than double the $13.79 billion seen by the end of August 2024.

Crypto ETFs reversed last year’s trend, bringing in $91.89 million in August and reaching $536.74 million in YTD net inflows, compared to $412.42 million in net outflows during the same period in 2024.

Currency ETFs gathered $3.84 million in August, with YTD net inflows totalling $30.95 million, up from $12.30 million in 2024.

Substantial inflows can be attributed to the top 20 ETFs by net new assets, which collectively gathered $3.27 Bn during August. BMO MSCI EAFE Index ETF (ZEA CN) gathered $475.01 Mn, the largest individual net inflow.

Top 20 ETFs by net new assets August 2025: Canada


Investors have tended to invest in Active ETFs during August.

Contact deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com if you have any questions or comments on the press release or ETFGI events, research or consulting services. 

Looking forward to The Future of ETF Regulation in Canada event on September 16th from 8am – 11am at BLG’s  office in Toronto. 

ETFGI, the leading global independent ETF research firm, the Canadian ETF Association, Scotiabank and the Investment Management Group at BLG are holding an event to discuss CSA Consultation Paper 81-409 – Enhancing Exchange-Traded Fund Regulation: Proposed Approaches and Discussion and the potential impact of the consultation on ETF regulations in Canada.

Panel 1: Views from the Regulators

  • Deborah Fuhr, Managing Partner, ETFGI, Founder, Board member of Women in ETFs and co-president of Women in ETFs EMEA 
  • Stephen Paglia, Vice President, Investment Management, Ontario Securities Commission
  • Paul Redman, Chief Economist, Ontario Securities Commission
  • Whitney Wakeling, Partner, Investment Management, BLG
     

Panel 2: Views from the Industry

  • Alex Perel, Managing Director, Head of ETF Services, Scotiabank Global Banking and Markets
  • Steven Leong, Managing Director, Head of Canada Product, BlackRock
  • Alan Green, Vice President, Head of ETFs, Scotia Global Asset Management
  • Paul MacDonald, CIO & Portfolio Manager, Harvest Portfolios Group

What to expect:

  • Discussion of the regulators’ key findings, potential regulatory gaps and proposed enhancements to the regulatory framework
  • Views from ETF providers on the research and proposals
  • Networking opportunities with changemakers in the ETF industry 
  • This event is in-person only.

Email us with any questions deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com and margareta.hricova@etfgi.com.
 

ETFGI (www.ETFGI.com) is a leading independent firm which has for over 13 years provided subscription research services providing monthly reports covering trends in the global ETFs ecosystem, factsheets on all ETFs and ETPs listed globally, consulting services, ETF TV (www.ETFtv.net) and our Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit educational events.

If you are interested in sponsoring or speaking at any of our upcoming events or have any questions, please contact us deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com and margareta.hricova@etfgi.com.