ETF flows, FUM highly concentrated among top three providers

Yasmine Raso

Senior Journalist

14 May 2026

The Australian exchange traded fund (ETF) industry’s flows and funds under management (FUM) are growing increasingly concentrated between the top three providers: Vanguard, Betashares and iShares.

According to Betashares’ own industry review for the month of April, the three firms together account for not only 77.11 per cent of more than the $5 billion in inflows recorded during the month but also approximately 64 per cent of total industry FUM – now at a record-high of $346 billion.

And with the inclusion of VanEck as the fourth-largest provider in terms of FUM, it jumps to just under 75 per cent and flows concentration increases to 86.07 per cent with the inclusion of Global X.

This comes as April marks a period of strong month-on-month growth (5.05 per cent or $16.6 billion) and the “third largest single-month dollar gain in the industry’s history”, mostly driven by a “rebound” in global markets.

While April’s ETF flows didn’t exactly meet the levels seen in March, positive sentiment towards international equities still kept it at the top in terms of category flows for the month with $2.57 billion, followed by Australian equities at $1.5 billion and fixed income at $1.01 billion.

The ETF market now boasts a total of 478 products trading on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and Cboe Australia, welcoming 12 new products into the fold in April alone.

While Global X managed to nab the top three spots in terms of performance – with the Global X Ultra Long Nasdaq 100 Complex ETF at 38.32 per cent, the Global X Hydrogen ETF at 35.42 per cent, and the Global X Semiconductor ETF at 30.56 per cent – four Vanguard products claimed the top spots ranked by flows, including the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF ($531.9 billion), the Vanguard All-World ex US Shares Index ETF ($339.9 billion), the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF ($290.5 billion) and the Vanguard Global Aggregate Bond Index (Hedged) ETF ($283.3 billion).

Betashares Investment Strategist, Hugh Lam, commented on market movements driving ETF flows.

“Despite the ongoing fallout from the Iran war, stock market indices staged a remarkable recovery in April buoyed by a
still resilient global economy and renewed optimism around the AI hardware/memory theme,” he said.

“Following their Q1 2026 earnings results, US mega-cap hyperscalers are forecast to spend US$755 billion on capital expenditures this year. This has fuelled a massive memory supercycle, with markets like South Korea’s KOSPI index having tripled over the last year due to its outsized exposure to memory chip manufacturers, Samsung and SK Hynix.

“Of course, the oil supply shock still presents downside risks to the global economy should the Strait of Hormuz remain
closed for longer than anticipated. Structural themes that are either unaffected or bolstered by the Iran war include AI
tech hardware, defence and energy security.

“Locally, the RBA raised interest rates for the third time on 5th May. While this complicates the growth/inflation picture for Australian equities; quality-oriented companies, the income and value factors, as well as Australia’s energy and material sectors should remain relatively insulated.”