Weekly Channel Summary
The Thematic channel ended the week with $391.97 billion in assets spread across 498 ETFs from 117 issuers. Net flows were negative over the trailing five days at -$806 million, though the channel remains firmly positive over longer horizons with $74,875 million gathered year-to-date and $91,937 million over the past year. The weekly outflow stands in contrast to the broader trend, driven largely by a single large redemption rather than a shift in investor sentiment across the category.
This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards
Precious Metals led all categories on the week at 1.27%, followed by Evolving Consumer at 0.90% and Midstream & MLPs at 0.58%, while FinTech lagged badly at -2.74% and Health Innovation declined 2.97% despite its standout 54.44% year-to-date gain. Disruptive Tech slipped 0.61% for the week but remains the top performer over longer stretches, up 43.13% year-to-date and 53.29% over six months. Industrial Revolution and Alternative Equity also posted weekly losses exceeding 1%, reflecting broad-based weakness outside of metals and consumer themes. The dispersion between weekly laggards and their strong multi-month trends underscores continued volatility within thematic sleeves even as structural growth stories persist.
Category Performance Snapshot
| Category | WTD | 1 Month | 3 Month | 6 Month | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precious Metals | 1.27% | -11.17% | 16.09% | -9.47% | 3.18% | 19.53% |
| Evolving Consumer | 0.90% | -0.48% | 0.19% | 8.87% | 1.06% | -3.94% |
| Midstream & MLPs | 0.58% | -5.73% | -0.25% | 2.60% | 18.99% | 23.24% |
| Multi-Sector | 0.21% | 3.96% | 3.44% | 21.10% | 19.31% | 13.92% |
| Natural Resources | 0.14% | -9.49% | 2.63% | -6.93% | 7.65% | 11.57% |
| Infrastructure | -0.25% | -1.70% | -6.13% | -3.39% | 12.34% | 12.99% |
| Disruptive Tech | -0.61% | 5.31% | 4.00% | 53.29% | 43.13% | 35.89% |
| Sustainability | -0.61% | -4.06% | -11.23% | -6.59% | 4.22% | 3.91% |
| Industrial Revolution | -1.33% | -0.46% | -3.10% | -4.50% | 2.51% | -1.64% |
| Alternative Equity | -1.41% | -5.01% | 0.91% | 2.59% | -9.07% | -3.80% |
| FinTech | -2.74% | -5.43% | -1.22% | 12.47% | 4.41% | -22.47% |
| Health Innovation | -2.97% | 5.60% | 11.81% | 59.72% | 54.44% | 52.20% |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance
Cybersecurity-focused funds dominated the top of the leaderboard, with WCBR gaining 7.12%, BUG up 6.73%, and HACK rising 6.24%, alongside the notable 6.94% advance in LATR. On the downside, crypto and compute-related names were hit hardest, led by WGMI falling 11.25%, QTUP down 10.70%, and GCPU off 9.87%. The performance split highlights a rotation away from speculative digital-asset and quantum computing exposures and toward established cybersecurity names. These moves occurred against a backdrop of strong year-to-date gains for the broader Disruptive Tech category, suggesting near-term profit-taking rather than a change in longer-term trend.
| Ticker | Fund Name | WTD Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Top Performers | ||
| WCBR | WisdomTree Cybersecurity Fund | 7.12% |
| LATR | Corgi Buy Now Pay Later ETF | 6.94% |
| BUG | Global X Cybersecurity ETF | 6.73% |
| NICO | Hexis Active Nicotine Engagement ETF | 6.43% |
| HACK | Amplify Cybersecurity ETF | 6.24% |
| Bottom Performers | ||
| WGMI | CoinShares Bitcoin Mining and Digital Power ETF | -11.25% |
| QTUP | Defiance Long Pure Quantum ETF | -10.70% |
| GCPU | Grayscale AI Compute ETF | -9.87% |
| NCLD | Roundhill Neocloud ETF | -9.84% |
| CRPT | First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF | -9.55% |
Analyzing the Weekly Flows
The Thematic channel saw net outflows of $806 million over the trailing five days, a reversal driven primarily by the Multi-Sector category, which shed $1,869 million despite a positive 19.31% year-to-date return. Disruptive Tech led inflows with $370 million, followed by Infrastructure at $320 million and Evolving Consumer at $180 million, each extending positive 30-day and year-to-date trends. Precious Metals also gathered $153 million for the week even as its 30-day and 90-day flows remain negative. Sustainability and Industrial Revolution rounded out the week’s laggards with modest outflows of $61 million and $58 million, respectively, consistent with their softer recent performance.
Category Flows Summary
| Category | Fund Count | AUM | 5 Day | 30 Day | 90 Day | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disruptive Tech | 103 | $118.17B | $370M | $1,897M | $8,096M | $39,308M | $44,194M |
| Infrastructure | 52 | $63.23B | $320M | $881M | $2,119M | $18,389M | $21,979M |
| Evolving Consumer | 49 | $13.31B | $180M | $525M | -$493M | -$1,987M | -$3,066M |
| Precious Metals | 16 | $47.37B | $153M | -$215M | -$968M | -$2,362M | -$297M |
| Natural Resources | 56 | $53.82B | $87M | -$169M | $74M | $10,260M | $14,117M |
| Midstream & MLPs | 18 | $26.55B | $56M | $49M | $772M | $2,056M | $2,466M |
| Health Innovation | 27 | $3.60B | $41M | $87M | $278M | $479M | $508M |
| Alternative Equity | 8 | $2.24B | $9M | -$75M | -$97M | $241M | $345M |
| FinTech | 28 | $4.50B | -$33M | $75M | $270M | -$408M | -$446M |
| Industrial Revolution | 60 | $19.05B | -$58M | -$145M | -$488M | $6,912M | $7,636M |
| Sustainability | 28 | $6.94B | -$61M | $109M | -$701M | $527M | $1,155M |
| Multi-Sector | 52 | $33.13B | -$1,869M | $936M | $1,581M | $1,461M | $3,345M |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow
Flows at the fund level were dominated by cybersecurity demand, as CIBR pulled in $383 million, the largest inflow in the channel, with GDX and AIS adding $186 million and $167 million. Redemptions were concentrated in a small number of names, with ARKK losing $2,099 million and DRAM shedding $694 million, together accounting for the bulk of the channel’s net weekly outflow. These two redemptions overwhelmed otherwise broad-based inflows across cybersecurity, gold mining, and infrastructure-linked funds. The scale of the ARKK outflow in particular stands out relative to all other single-fund flows recorded during the week.
| Ticker | Fund Name | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Inflows | ||
| CIBR | First Trust NASDAQ Cybersecurity ETF | $383M |
| GDX | VanEck Gold Miners ETF | $186M |
| AIS | VistaShares Artificial Intelligence Supercycle ETF | $167M |
| MAGS | Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF | $157M |
| ITB | iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF | $143M |
| Outflows | ||
| ARKK | ARK Innovation ETF | -$2,099M |
| DRAM | Roundhill Memory ETF | -$694M |
| ARKW | ARK Next Generation Technology ETF | -$105M |
| SIL | Global X Silver Miners ETF | -$68M |
| SHLD | Global X Defense Tech ETF | -$68M |
Note: the following fund(s) were excluded from the flow totals above because the weekly flow exceeds 75% of the fund’s AUM and may be the result of a custom rebalance: MN ($72M).
Issuer League Table Update
Global X and iShares remain the two largest issuers in the Thematic channel by assets, holding 16.57% and 15.53% market share respectively, followed closely by First Trust at 14.66%. First Trust led all issuers in weekly inflows with $562 million, aided by strong demand for its cybersecurity exposure, while iShares and VanEck added $218 million and $192 million. ARK recorded the largest weekly outflow among issuers at -$2,172 million, driven by redemptions concentrated in its flagship innovation fund, with Roundhill also seeing a notable -$531 million outflow. The divergence between First Trust’s inflows and ARK’s outflows was the defining issuer-level story of the week.
Top 5 Issuers by AUM
| Brand | Fund Count | AUM | AUM Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global X | 40 | $64.95B | 16.57% |
| iShares | 32 | $60.89B | 15.53% |
| First Trust | 32 | $57.44B | 14.66% |
| VanEck | 20 | $44.15B | 11.26% |
| Roundhill | 14 | $32.57B | 8.31% |
Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow
| Brand | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|
| Inflows | |
| First Trust | $562M |
| iShares | $218M |
| VanEck | $192M |
| Outflows | |
| ARK | -$2,172M |
| Roundhill | -$531M |
| Wedbush | -$29M |
For a deeper dive into these trends, access our FREE, in-depth Thematic ETF reports in the right side panel of this page.
Disclosures
This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.
This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.
