The global ETF industry marks its 36th anniversary, celebrating more than three decades of innovation since the launch of the world’s first ETF
Press Release
LONDON — March 12, 2025 — The global ETF industry marks its 36th anniversary, celebrating more than three decades of innovation since the launch of the world’s first exchange-traded fund. On March 9, 1990, the Toronto Index Participation Shares (TIPS) were listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada, tracking the TSE 35 Index, laying the foundation for a product that has transformed how investors access markets. From that single listing, ETFs have evolved into a cornerstone of global investing—offering transparency, liquidity, cost efficiency, and broad market access—and today span equities, fixed income, commodities, Active strategies, and digital assets across markets worldwide.
As the ETF industry marked its 36th anniversary, assets invested in the ETFs industry in Canada reached a record US$648.52 billion. During February the ETFs industry in Canada gathered net inflows of US$17.49 billion during February, bringing year-to-date net inflows to a record US$36.98 billion, according to the ETFGI February 2026 Canadian ETFs and ETPs industry landscape insights report, the monthly report which is part of an annual paid-for research subscription service. ETFGI is a 14 year old leading independent research and consultancy firm renowned for its expertise in subscription research, consulting services, events, and ETF TV on global ETF industry trends. (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted.)
Highlights
- The global ETF industry marked its 36th anniversary, commemorating the launch of the world’s first ETF, which was listed in Canada on March 9, 1990.
- Assets invested in the Canadian ETF industry reached a record $648.52 billion at the end of February 2026, surpassing the previous high of $563.08 billion recorded in December 2025.
- Total assets have increased by 11.0% year‑to‑date in 2026, rising from $584.47 billion at year‑end 2025 to $648.52 billion.
- Net inflows of $17.49 billion were recorded in February 2026.
- Year‑to‑date net inflows of $36.98 billion represent the highest level on record, exceeding the previous highs of $15.26 billion in 2025 and $9.44 billion in 2020.
- February 2026 marked the 44th consecutive month of net inflows into Canadian ETFs.
“The S&P 500 declined by 0.76% in February and was up 0.68% year‑to‑date in 2026. Developed markets excluding the U.S. rose 6.03% during February and were up 12.55% year‑to‑date, with Korea (up 20.11%) and Luxembourg (up 16.61%) recording the strongest gains among developed markets for the month. Emerging markets increased by 2.47% in February and were up 8.11% year‑to‑date, led by Thailand (up 19.48%) and Taiwan (up 11.63%),” said Deborah Fuhr, Managing Partner, Founder, and Owner of ETFGI.
Growth in Canadian ETF assets as of the end of February
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Source: ETFGI data sourced from ETF/ETP sponsors, exchanges, regulatory filings, Thomson Reuters/Lipper, Bloomberg, publicly available sources and data generated in-house. Note: “ETFs” are typically open-end index funds that provide daily portfolio transparency, are listed and traded on exchanges like stocks on a secondary basis as well as utilising a unique creation and redemption process for primary transactions. “ETPs” refers to other products that have similarities to ETFs in the way they trade and settle but they do not use a mutual fund structure. The use of other structures including grantor trusts, partnerships, notes and depositary receipts by ETPs can create different tax and regulatory implications for investors when compared to ETFs which are funds. |
The ETF industry in Canada had 1,515 ETFs, with 1,907 listings, assets of $648.52 Bn, from 50 providers on 2 exchanges at the end of February.
RBC iShares is the largest ETF provider in Canada by assets, with $179.74 billion, representing a 27.7% market share. BMO Asset Management ranks second, managing $128.17 billion in assets and holding a 19.8% market share, followed by Vanguard with $105.51 billion and a 16.3% market share. Collectively, the top three providers account for 63.7% of total assets invested in the Canadian ETF industry. The remaining 47 providers each hold less than 6% market share.
Highlights for net flows
- ETFs gathered net inflows of $17.49 billion in February.
- Equity ETFs recorded $7.54 billion in net inflows during February, bringing year‑to‑date inflows through February 2026 to $17.25 billion, compared with $4.68 billion at the same point in 2025.
- Fixed income ETFs attracted $2.65 billion in net inflows in February, lifting year‑to‑date inflows to $4.99 billion, versus $1.70 billion by the end of February 2025.
- Active ETFs gathered $6.53 billion in net inflows during February, bringing year‑to‑date inflows in Canada to $8.35 billion, in line with the level reported at the same point in 2025.
- Crypto ETFs reported $156 million in net inflows in February, raising year‑to‑date inflows to $168 million, up from $90 million year‑to‑date in 2025.
Substantial inflows can be attributed to the top 20 ETFs by net new assets, which collectively gathered $7.56 Bn during February. iShares Core S&P/TSX Capped Composite Index ETF (XIC CN) gathered $1.45 Bn, the largest individual net inflow.
Top 20 ETFs by net new assets February
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Source: ETFGI data sourced from ETF/ETP sponsors, exchanges, regulatory filings, Thomson Reuters/Lipper, Bloomberg, publicly available sources and data generated in-house. Note: This report is based on the most recent data available at the time of publication. Asset and flow data may change slightly as additional data becomes available. |
Investors have tended to invest in Equity ETFs during February.
Contact deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com if you have any questions or comments on the press release or ETFGI subscription research, 6 annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits, ETF TV or our consulting services.
Register now to join us at our 8th Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit - Canada, taking place on December 8th in Toronto.
The summit is designed as an educational event to foster deep, insightful discussions on the use, due diligence and selection and best trading practices for ETFs by financial advisors and institutional investors in Canada. Explore how regulatory changes are impacting product development including share classes, Active ETFs, Alternative ETFs, Crypto, digital assets and tokenisation and market structure.
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📋View the agenda, speakers, and topics from last year's successful annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit - Canada here.
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ETFGI is a leading independent research and consultancy firm with 14 years of experience, recognized for its expertise in subscription research, consulting services, 6 annual regional in person ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit events that cover all ETFs listed global on 81 exchanges in 63 countries, and ETF TV, covering global ETF industry trends. Interested in subscribing to ETFGI’s research email: contact@etfgi.com
ETF TV (www.ETFtv.net) is an on-demand program that highlights newly launched exchange-traded funds, products, and notes, while exploring the most pressing topics shaping the ETF landscape. Each episode brings together leading voices from across the industry—including issuers, investors, benchmark providers, and traders—to discuss the trends and developments influencing the use and management of exchange-traded products.
Every show features insightful interviews with key market participants, offering expert perspectives on the issues that matter most to the ETF community. ETF TV also offers the opportunity to create sponsored episodes, allowing partners to collaborate with us in producing custom content tailored to their brand and messaging.
If you’re interested in sponsoring or speaking at one of our upcoming ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits, subscribing to any of ETFGI’s annual research services (www.ETFGI.com), sponsoring an episode of ETF TV (www.ETFtv.net), exploring our consulting offerings, or if you have any questions, please reach out to us at deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com and margareta.hricova@etfgi.com.
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