ETF Inflows & Outflows
Performance Leaders & Laggards
Source: ETF Action; flows and performance data as of 8/7/25; performance data excludes leveraged and inverse products
Weekly ETF Reads
ETFs are on pace to take in a record $1.3 trillion in 2025. Here’s where the money’s going. by Christine Idzelis
“U.S.-listed ETFs attracted $121 billion in July, pushing their total this year to $677 billion.”
1 Portfolio, 2 Formats: The Future of ETFs by Todd Rosenbluth
“The asset management industry is close to a major event.”
Ballooning ‘buffer’ ETF market leads to more complex array of products by Suzanne McGee
“The likelihood of any new product being brought out now that an investor’s portfolio really requires is pretty small.”
How Outcome Based ETFs Are Reshaping Investor Demand by Cboe
“Outcome-based ETFs quietly surpassed $70 billion in assets under management in July 2025, but this milestone may be just the beginning.”
A Look at ETFs in Retirement Plans by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries
“Very few plans include exchange traded funds (ETFs) in their lineups – why is that?”
(Note: I thought this was interesting (and hard to find) data on ETF usage in 401k and other retirement plans. I still believe there’s an enormous opportunity here for ETFs.)
RIAs were supposed to flock to Bitcoin ETFs, but retail investors dominate; Bloomberg’s Eric Balchunas sees a big shift coming, and Schwab’s Rick Wurster finds reason to cheer by Oisín Breen
“Bitcoin ETFs account for just 0.17% of the $8.5 trillion managed by approximately 18,700 RIAs.”
ETF Post of the Week
The US ETF market isn’t just growing in assets – it’s growing in the number of players. There are now 268 ETF issuers, double the number from just three years ago, and more seem to pop up every week. Morningstar’s Zach Evens with the very simple (and accurate) takeaway:
“The explosion of new ETF issuers represents the fact that there is investor appetite for ETFs, and firms are eager to meet that demand.”
Don’t expect this trend to slow down any time soon. With lower barriers to entry, white-label ETF platforms, anticipated approval of the multi-share class structure, and rising investor interest in everything from crypto to custom thematic strategies, the ETF Terrordome will only grow more crowded – and more cutthroat.
GRADUALLY THEN SUDDENLY: There are now 268 different ETF issuers in the US- a number that has about doubled over the past three years. 45 issuers debuted last year and we're on pace for 50 this year. Wild.. altho logical too because it's where the fish are biting. pic.twitter.com/g03yJKqkcQ
— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) August 5, 2025
ETF Chart of the Week
While bitcoin and ether ETFs have dominated headlines, xrp and solana ETFs have quietly attracted over $1 billion in combined inflows since launching earlier this year – with more than $700 million coming in July alone.
The first solana ETF launched in March, providing futures-based (and leveraged) exposure to the digital asset. In July, Rex-Osprey introduced a creatively structured spot solana + staking ETF, which has already grown to nearly $150 million in assets under management.
Xrp’s ETF debut came in April with a leveraged product, followed by three more futures-based (and leveraged) ETFs in May and July.
This level of demand is highly noteworthy. Several issuers are currently working to bring spot xrp and solana ETFs to market – products that would be structured similarly to the spot bitcoin and ether ETFs (as ’33 Act grantor trusts). The strong investor interest in the existing xrp and solana ETFs suggests that spot products in these categories could have real traction.
It’s surprising that BlackRock hasn’t stepped in yet and filed for these ETFs (yes, this my attempt at humor).
Source: FactSet’s Jose Paulo Tolentino
ETF Prime Podcast
Last week’s ETF Prime featured Tom Lee, Co-Founder of Fundstrat Global Advisors, unpacking the impressive success of the Fundstrat Granny Shots US Large Cap ETF (GRNY) and offering his outlook on Ethereum’s future. Cinthia Murphy, Investment Strategist at VettaFi, spotlighted the top 20 ETF launches since early last year.
Crypto Prime Podcast
James Seyffart, Senior Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, joined me on last week’s Crypto Prime to break down the latest developments in crypto ETFs. He discussed how generic listing standards could be applied, the potential approval timelines for Grayscale’s and Bitwise’s crypto index ETFs, staking in spot ether ETFs, BlackRock’s next move in the crypto ETF space, and more.
