Industry reaches fresh new high with international equities all the rage
- The Australian ETF industry hit a new all-time high in assets under management in February with industry growth driven by a combination of asset value appreciation and investor net inflows.
- February saw assets grow 3.4% month-on-month, for a total monthly market cap increase of $6.3B, with the industry reaching a new all-time high of $189.4B.
- Net inflows for the month were $1.6B, representing ~25% of the industry’s growth in February.
- As the holiday period came to a close, we saw trading value rise a full 24% month on month in February, with ASX trading value of ~$10B for the month.
Exchanged Traded Funds Market cap
- Australian Exchange Traded Funds Market Cap (ASX + CBOE): $189.4B – New all-time high
- ASX CHESS Market Cap: $161.4B1
- Market Cap increase for month: 3.4%, $6.3B
- Market cap growth for last 12 months: 35.5%, $49.6B
Net Flows
- Net flows for the month: $1.6B
New Products
- 359 Exchange Traded Products trading on the ASX & CBOE
- A big month of new launches with 11 new funds launched. This included two new Nasdaq variants by Betashares (JNDQ and QNDQ), 5 new factors funds launched by iShares on CBOE along with 4 other funds by other issuers.
- Due to the closure of the single bond ETF oriented issuer XTB, all of their remaining exposures (19) were delisted from the ASX and CBOE.
Trading value
- Trading value rose by 24% in February, with ASX trading value of ~$10B for the month
Performance
- The best performing ETFs were overwhelming crypto focused products, with both Ethereum (+51%), Bitcoin (47%) and crypto oriented equities (35%) rising strongly post the approval of US-listed Bitcoin ETFs.
Top 5 category inflows (by $)
| Broad Category | Inflow Value |
| International Equities | $1,051,299,196 |
| Fixed Income | $309,465,791 |
| Australian Equities | $299,787,097 |
| Short | $31,784,476 |
| Multi-Asset | $25,810,949 |
Top category outflows (by $)
| Broad Category | Inflow Value |
| Cash | ($97,915,444) |
Top sub-category inflows (by $)
| Sub-category | Inflow Value |
| International Equities – Developed World | $583,157,637 |
| International Equities – US | $294,898,658 |
| Australian Equities – Broad | $237,350,917 |
| Australian Bonds | $225,015,723 |
| International Equities – E&R – ESG Lite | $150,592,293 |
Top sub-category outflows (by $)
| Sub-category | Inflow Value |
| Cash | ($97,915,444) |
| International Equities – Europe | ($73,883,456) |
| International Equities – E&R – Sustainability | ($33,863,355) |
| Australian Equities – Sector | ($33,428,416) |
| International Equities – E&R – Ethical | ($17,740,478) |
Top Performing Products – 2023
| Ticker | Product Name | Performance |
| EETH | Global X 21Shares Ethereum ETF | 51.1% |
| EBTC | Global X 21Shares Bitcoin ETF | 46.9% |
| CRYP | Betashares Crypto Innovators ETF | 34.9% |
| MCCL | Munro Climate Change Leaders Fund (Managed Fund) | 21.3% |
| CURE | Global X S&P Biotech ETF | 14.2% |
Footnotes:
1. Since February 2023, the ASX started reporting additional data on a CHESS-only basis. The primary use of such data is that it will exclude, amongst other things, the FuM and Flows in ‘dual class’ Active ETFs and potentially provide a more accurate picture of exchange traded activity.
Investor & founder with a Financial Services & Fintech focus. Co-founder of Betashares. Passionate about entrepreneurship and startups.
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