According to the Investment Company Institute ("ICI"), as of April 2009, there are now 726 Exchange-traded funds ("ETFs") with over $529 billion in assets. Since 1995, according to my calculations, the number of ETFs has increased by approximately 96% per year over this period. Not only has the number and type of ETFs increased but the popularity of these products across institutional investors, financial advisors and individual investors has also risen over this time frame. For evidence of this trend towards ETF utilization, as I referenced in a post earlier this year, one needs to look no further than to Monday, September 15, 2008. According to Barclays Global Investors, this day represented one of the largest trading days, based on volume, in U.S. history and ETFs accounted for 40% of the trading volume in U.S. equities that day - 40%!Read more
The Growing Popularity of Exchange-traded funds
Published: Jun. 30, 2009