The Australian ETF industry has catapulted beyond $100 billion in funds under management for the first time after a strong month for growth.
BetaShares’ ETF review for March shows the ASX exchange traded product market cap hit $102.9 billion at the end of march, representing a market cap change of 5.7% ($5.6 billion) for the month.
The market cap growth for the last 12 months was 80% – an all time high and the fastest yearly growth on record.
The company said in its report that the Australian ETF industry’s growth in March was driven by a combination of asset price appreciation, a large unlisted fund conversion and solid net flows.
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Seven new products were launched in March, including BetaShares Climate Change Innovation ETF (ASX: ERTH), bringing the total number of ETF products being trading on the ASX and Chi-X to 265.
ASX ETF trading value declined slightly by 5% month on month, but Betashares noted it it remained above the $7 billion mark.
Top 5 category inflows (by $) – March 2021
| Category | Inflow Value |
| Australian Equities | $618,968,086 |
| International Equities | $618,780,900 |
| Fixed Income | $124,550,233 |
| Multi-Asset | $102,665,834 |
| Australian Listed Property | $47,209,907 |
Betashare’s report said equities once again led the way for inflows and March experienced an even split of interest in Australian Equities ($618m of flows) and Global Equities ($618m).
Top sub-category inflows (by $) – March 2021
| Sub-Category | Inflow Value |
| Australian Equities – Broad | $520,874,507 |
| International Equities – Sector | $189,108,519 |
| International Equities – Developed World | $137,404,235 |
| Multi-Asset | $102,665,834 |
| International Equities – Emerging Markets | $97,862,805 |
With the $100 billion milestone passed, Betashares has revised its forecast for the industry’s growth for the remainder of 2021.
“We believe the industry will grow a further 25% over the rest of the year amid strong investor demand to end the year at ~$125B,” the company said in its report.
