European ETFs set new record as AUM surpasses $2.6 trillion
15 JUL, 2025
By Jose Luis Palmer from RankiaPro Europe
The European ETF market reached a new milestone in Q2 2025, with assets under management (AUM) surpassing $2.6 trillion. According to HANetf’s Exchange-Traded Europe Q2 2025 report, the market expanded by 13.77% over the quarter, driven by sustained demand for core equity strategies, growing appetite for active ETFs, and sharp inflows into defence-themed products.
Equity and Fixed Income ETFs anchor market expansion
Core equity ETFs contributed $44.38 billion in net flows in Q2, bringing total assets to $1.19 trillion. Despite a slight decline in quarterly flows compared to Q1 (down 3.16%), AUM in core equity grew by over 16%, reflecting positive market performance alongside investor allocations.
Fixed income ETFs registered $21.67 billion in inflows, up 42.62% from the previous quarter. This segment now accounts for $598.13 billion in AUM, following increased investor interest amid macroeconomic uncertainty.
Commodity ETFs saw marginal net flows of $0.41 billion, with AUM growing by 5.91%. In contrast, crypto ETPs recorded the highest relative inflow growth, with net flows increasing by 298.31% and total assets reaching $17.86 billion.
Surge in active and thematic strategies
Active ETFs recorded AUM growth of 37.80% in Q2, reaching $78.52 billion. While quarterly flows dipped slightly to $5.18 billion, the structural trend toward active strategies continued, highlighted by HANetf receiving approximately 345 enquiries in 2025—85% of which were related to launching active ETFs.
Options-based ETFs also gained traction, with AUM rising by 59.39% to $4.61 billion. These products outpaced broader market growth and reflect a rising interest in volatility-managed strategies.
Defence ETFs emerged as a standout category. Assets more than quadrupled year-to-date, reaching $13.57 billion by the end of June. Although inflows slowed slightly in Q2 to $3.81 billion (from $4.18 billion in Q1), the category grew 83.59% quarter-over-quarter. The number of defence ETFs more than doubled in the same period, from 7 to 15.
VanEck, WisdomTree, and HANetf led in this segment, with HANetf’s Future of Defence UCITS ETF (NATO) now managing $2.7 billion and its newly launched Future of European Defence UCITS ETF (ARMY) surpassing €140 million.
The European ETP landscape continues to expand, with 11 new issuers entering the market in Q2 and 3 exits, bringing the total number of active brands to 138. HANetf represents approximately 16% of them, underlining its role in supporting new ETF launches across the region.
