Global ETF assets surpass $24 trillion as passive investing grows

Global exchange-traded fund (ETF) assets reached $24.03 trillion by the end of August 2026, following nearly $2 trillion in net inflows during the first eight months of the year. This growth represents a significant shift in financial markets, with August marking the 87th consecutive month of net inflows into global ETFs.

In the United States, passive funds—including index mutual funds and ETFs—accounted for 55% of fund assets at the end of 2025, totaling $19.4 trillion. This surpassed actively managed funds, which held $16 trillion. The dominance of passive strategies is attributed to lower costs, broad diversification, and the historical difficulty of active managers to outperform benchmarks like the S&P 500 after fees.

While traditional index investing remains the industry foundation, actively managed ETFs are a rapidly growing segment. Globally, actively managed ETFs held approximately $2.72 trillion as of August 2026, drawing $663.59 billion in net inflows during the first eight months of the year.