The exchange traded fund industry’s exponential growth is trickling down to actively managed funds. For the week ending April 24, actively managed ETFs had a combined $20.15 billion in assets under management, according to AdvisorShares data, marking the first time active ETFs have topped $20 billion in assets.
The growth of active ETFs, which are still just a small piece of the over $2 trillion U.S. ETF industry, jibes with broader ETF trends. According to ETFGI, a London-based ETF research firm, the global exchange traded products industry will surpass hedge funds in terms of assets under management this quarter. [ETFs Nearly Bigger Than Hedge Funds]
“Global ETFs gathered $36.1 billion in March to lift Q1 flows to $97.2 billion, nearly triple the total from Q1 2014,” according to BlackRock, parent company of iShares, the world’s largest ETF issuer. [ETFs add $36.1B in March]
Bond ETFs remain the dominant asset gatherers among active funds. Actively managed short-term bonds ETFs had a combined $6.26 billion in assets, good 31.1% of the U.S. active ETF market, at the end of last week, according to AdvisorShares. With $3.57 billion in assets under management, the PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity ETF (NYSEArca: MINT) is the largest actively managed ETF. MINT has an effective duration of just 0.35 years.
Global bond ETFs had $3.81 billion in AUM, accounting for almost 19% share of the active market, according to AdvisorShares.
Some new active ETFs have gotten off to fast starts. For example, the SPDR DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF (NYSEArca: TOTL), managed by Jeff Gundlach’s DoubleLine Capital, has accumulated $386.1 million in assets since coming to market in February. [Gundlach Enters ETF Fray]