ETFGI Reports Global ETF Industry Records US$2.24 Trillion in YTD Net Inflows Through September 2026, Extending Winning Streak to 88 Consecutive Months

Press Release

LONDON — October 26, 2026 — 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, reports Global ETF Industry records US$2.24 Trillion in YTD net inflows through September 2026, extending winning streak to 88 consecutive months. During September, the ETFs industry globally gathered net inflows of US$276.06 billion, bringing year-to-date net inflows to US$2.24 trillion, according to ETFGI's September 2026 Global 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, 6 annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits, and ETF TV on global ETF industry trends.  (All dollar values in USD unless otherwise noted)

Highlights

• Global ETF assets stood at $23.91 trillion at the end of September 2026, slightly below the record high of $24.03 trillion reached at the end of August 2026. 

• Global ETF assets increased by 20.7% year-to-date, rising from $19.81 trillion at the end of 2025 to $23.91 trillion at the end of September 2026. 

• ETFs gathered net inflows of $276.06 billion during September 2026, bringing year-to-date inflows to a record $2.24 trillion. 

• The $2.24 trillion of year-to-date net inflows is the highest on record, surpassing the previous records of $1.54 trillion in 2025 and $1.24 trillion in 2024. 

• September 2026 marked the 88th consecutive month of net inflows into ETFs globally. 

• The three largest ETF issuers, iShares, Vanguard, and State Street SPDR, managed $13.93 trillion in assets, representing 58.3% of global ETF assets. 

• These three issuers also gathered $1.11 trillion in net new assets year-to-date, accounting for 49.6% of total global ETF inflows in 2026.

   

- Register now join us on November 19th in London for our 7th Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit – Europe and Africa and virtually on November 20th.

- Register now join us on December 8th in Toronto for our 8th Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit – Canada.

- Register now to join us at our 7th Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit - Middle East & GCC, that will take place in Dubai. (Date TBC)

“Equity market performance weakened in September across both developed and emerging markets. While the S&P 500 declined 0.35%, it remained up 12.75% for the year. Developed markets excluding the U.S. fell 2.72% in September but continued to show strong gains of 14.86% year-to-date. New Zealand and Luxembourg experienced the largest declines among developed markets. Emerging markets also retreated, falling 1.77% during the month, although they remained up 11.26% in 2026. Turkey and the Czech Republic recorded the steepest declines among emerging markets,” said Deborah Fuhr, Managing Partner, Founder, and Owner of ETFGI.

Growth in assets in the Global ETFs industry as of the end of September

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.

Top 3 ETF Issuers Account for More Than Half of Global ETF Assets and Nearly Half of YTD Flows  

At the end of September 2026, the global ETFs industry consisted of 17,989 ETFs, with 34,573 listings, holding $23.90 trillion in assets from 1,076 providers listed on 83 exchanges across 65 countries. During September, the industry gathered $276.06 billion in net new assets (NNA), bringing year-to-date (YTD) inflows to a record $2.24 trillion.

The three largest ETF issuers globally, iShares, Vanguard, and State Street SPDR, continued to dominate the industry, together managing $13.93 trillion, representing 58.3% of all global ETF assets.

Year-to-date through September 2026, iShares, Vanguard, and State Street SPDR gathered a combined $1.11 trillion in net new assets, representing approximately 49.6% of the industry's total YTD inflows of $2.24 trillion.

Net inflows highlights

Net inflows into ETFs reached $276.06 billion in September 2026, lifting year-to-date inflows to a record $2.24 trillion. This exceeds the previous annual records of $1.54 trillion in 2025 and $1.24 trillion in 2024, highlighting continued strong global investor demand for ETFs.

Equity ETFs attracted $100.07 billion in net inflows during September, bringing year-to-date (YTD) net inflows to $976.17 billion, significantly higher than the $677.01 billion gathered through September 2025.

Fixed income ETFs recorded $72.16 billion in net inflows during September, increasing YTD net inflows to $437.78 billion, exceeding the $314.16 billion gathered through September 2025.

Commodity ETFs gathered $22.22 billion in net inflows during September, bringing YTD net inflows to $56.59 billion, below the $73.18 billion reported through September 2025.

Active ETFs attracted $75.84 billion in net inflows during September, lifting YTD net inflows to $733.95 billion, well above the $446.75 billion gathered through September 2025.

Equity and active ETFs continued to be the primary drivers of global ETF asset growth in 2026, while fixed income ETFs also experienced record levels of investor demand.

Substantial inflows can be attributed to the top 20 ETF's by net new assets, which collectively gathered $82.52 Bn in September, the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY US) gathered $10.70 Bn alone.
 

Top 20 ETFs by net new assets September 2026: Global

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.

Substantial inflows can be attributed to the top 10 ETP's by net new assets, which collectively gathered $20.25 Bn in September, the Perth Mint Gold (PMGOLD AU) gathered $11.68 Bn alone.

Top 10 ETPs by net new assets September 2026: Global

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 September.

Contact deborah.fuhr@etfgi.com if you have any questions or comments on the press release or ETFGI’s subscription research, consulting services, 6 annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits, or ETF TV.

Register now to join us at our 7th Annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit - Europe & Africa, taking place on November 19 in London and November 20 virtually.

Designed as an educational event for financial advisors, discretionary fund managers, fund selectors, wealth managers and institutional investors, the summit brings together leading investors, issuers, regulators, exchanges and trading firms to discuss the trends transforming the ETF industry.

Why Attend?

The in-person event in London will feature a full day of thought leadership, industry insights and networking with senior decision-makers from across the UK, Europe and Africa, followed by a networking drinks reception hosted by Waystone.

Day 1 sessions will include:

• Welcome Remarks
• ETF Industry Trends - ETFGI Research
• How Regulations are Impacting ETFs and Investors
• ETF Trends: Investor Adoption and Distribution
• The Evolution of Active ETFs in Europe and Beyond
• Global Equities and Income: How Investors Are Using ETFs to Access Different Strategies
• The Rise of Thematic ETFs in Europe and Asia Pacific
• ETF Trading & Liquidity: How the Market Really Works
• Indian Capital Markets: Unlocking the Next Wave of Passive Growth
• How to Enter the ETF Market: Build, Buy or Rent?
• The Outlook for the Asset Management and ETF Industry
• Women in ETFs: From Curious to Confident
• Networking Drinks – Hosted by Waystone

The virtual program will provide a unique opportunity to hear directly from exchanges and market leaders discussing the ETF landscape and outlook across various regions.

Day 2 sessions will include:

• Fireside Chat with A2X Markets
• Botswana’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook
• Israel’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook
• Fireside Chat with Johannesburg Stock Exchange
• Kenya’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook
• Namibia’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook
• Nigeria’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook
• Zimbabwe’s ETF Market: Evolution & Outlook

Attendees will gain first-hand insights into ETF development, investor adoption trends, regulatory developments and future opportunities across these markets.

Speakers will include:

• Tiaan Bazuin, Chief Executive Officer, Namibia Securities Exchange
• Justin Bgoni, Group CEO, ZSE Holdings
• Kopano Bolokwe, Head of Product Development, Botswana Stock Exchange    
• Aniruddha Chatterjee, CEO - NSE Indices, Data and Cogencis, NSE Indices Limited
• Jude Chiemeka, CEO, Nigerian Exchange Limited
• Gary Clarke, Head of Legal & Regulation, A2X Markets 
• James Cullinane, Managing Associate, Simmons & Simmons LLP
• Vincent Denoiseux, Head of Product Research and Innovation, EMEA, iShares 
• Hazel Doyle, Partner, K&L Gates
• Bradley Duke, Managing Director, Head of Europe, Bitwise
• Catharine Dwyer, Firm Authorisations Manager and Advisory Unit Lead, Capital Markets & Funds Division, Central Bank of Ireland
• Deborah Fuhr, Managing Partner & Founder, ETFGI
• Dr. Güzhan Gülay, Executive Vice President, Borsa Istanbul
• James Hodgson, Senior Associate, Asset Management and Investment Funds Group, Arthur Cox LLP
• Mhairi Jackson, Asset Management Policy Manager, FCA
• Patrick Mattar, Head of ETPs, Allfunds
• Anita Mo, CEO and Head of Client Management, Hang Seng Indexes Company
• Andrea Murray, ETF European Business Development,, Brown Brothers Harriman 
• Frank Mwiti, CEO, Nairobi Securities Exchange
• Fotios Kassianidis, PhD, Head of Indexed Investments & Solutions (IIS), MSCI
• Stefan Kuhn, Head of ETF Distribution EMEA, Fidelity International
• Tony O’Brien, Chief Commercial Officer, Ireland, U.S. Bank
• Clement Paccalet, ETF Specialist, BNP Paribas 
• Steve Palmer, Head of ETF Solutions, Royal London Asset Management
• Yaniv Pagot, EVP, Head of Trading, Tel Aviv Stock Exchange
• Chris Püllen, CEO & Co-Founder, NaroIQ
• Valdene Reddy, JSE Group CEO, JSE Ltd 
• Miranda Seath, Director, Market Insight & Fund Sectors, The Investment Association

Additional speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.

EVENT DETAILS:
📅 19 November 2026 (London) | 20 November 2026 (Virtual)
📍One Moorgate Place, Chartered Accountants Hall, 1 Moorgate Place London EC2R 6EA, United Kingdom
⏰ Full day conference followed by a networking drinks reception hosted by Waystone
🆓 Complimentary registration available for CFA Charterholders and CFA Society members, Buy-side institutional investors and Financial advisors
📚 Educational credits available

📋View the agenda, speakers, and topics from last year's successful annual ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summit - Europe & Africa here.

Register today and join the leading voices shaping the future of ETFs, digital assets, tokenisation and investment innovation across Europe and Africa.

Register to join one or more of our upcoming ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits in 2026:

• 7th Annual - Europe & Africa, November 19th in London and November 20th virtual.
• 8th Annual - Canada, December 8th in Toronto at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG)'s office. Early bird expires on Oct 27th.
• 7th Annual - Middle East & GCC in Dubai, TBC

Register to join upcoming ETFGI Global ETFs Insights Summits in 2027:

• 8th Annual - Latin America, day 1 in Mexico City and day 2 virtual.
• 8th Annual - Asia Pacific, day 1 in Hong Kong and day 2 virtual.
• 8th Annual - United States, in New York City.

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.