Macro Summary & Product Growth
The Defined Outcome (Buffer) ETF channel currently stands at $91.44 Billion in total Assets Under Management across 488 distinct products managed by 19 different issuers. Over the past week, the space saw modest net inflows totaling $67 Million. Despite the slower week, the broader trend remains exceptionally strong, with Year-to-Date net flows sitting at $6.45 Billion and an impressive $13.20 Billion gathered over the trailing 1-Year period.
The rapid expansion of the Buffer space shows no signs of slowing down. In just the last three months alone, issuers have launched a staggering 38 new ETFs. This relentless pace of product development highlights how asset managers continue to flood the market with new outcome variations, targeting increasingly specific exposures, deeper buffers, and novel strategies to capture investor demand for structured payouts.
Performance (Idiosyncratic Returns)
It is crucial to understand that Defined Outcome performance is highly idiosyncratic. Returns are primarily dependent on a fund’s current proximity to its upside cap and downside buffer at any given moment, rather than moving in lockstep with the underlying asset. For example, over the past week, funds tracking Equity: Region – Asia-Pacific Emerging exhibited the strongest category beta returns at 3.81%, while Digital Asset: Cryptocurrency – Bitcoin tracking funds lagged significantly with a return of -3.42%.
To effectively analyze these distinct return paths and evaluate how specific funds are performing relative to their defined outcome parameters, we encourage you to explore the full, free performance report available in the right-side panel.
Flow Cyclicality & Trends
Flows this week exhibited their typical cyclicality, with capital highly concentrated in the current outcome period (May). The broader Equity category remains the dominant driver of growth. Leading the pack for individual funds was the SFLR (Innovator Equity Managed Floor ETF), which attracted $19 Million in new assets over the trailing five days.
Flows by Asset Class
| Asset Class | # of Funds | AUM | WTD Flow | 1M Flow | 3M Flow | YTD Flow | 1Y Flow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffer – Commodity | 1 | $51M | $1M | ($1M) | $6M | ($3M) | ($2M) |
| Buffer – Crypto | 20 | $186M | ($2M) | $1M | $4M | ($4M) | $62M |
| Buffer – Equity | 465 | $91,176M | $68M | $1,257M | $4,114M | $6,459M | $13,182M |
| Buffer – Fixed Income | 2 | $30M | $0M | $0M | $0M | ($2M) | ($39M) |
Flows by Outcome Period / Strategy
| Implementation | WTD Flow | 1M Flow | 3M Flow | YTD Flow | 1Y Flow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 3 Inflows | |||||
| Buffer Reset: May | $73M | $1,809M | $1,834M | $1,779M | $1,753M |
| Buffer Reset: Laddered | $51M | $576M | $1,326M | $1,978M | $4,001M |
| Buffer Reset: Quarterly | $23M | $308M | $793M | $1,290M | $2,736M |
| Top 3 Outflows | |||||
| Buffer Reset: September | ($16M) | ($383M) | ($321M) | ($516M) | $969M |
| Buffer Reset: February | ($15M) | $114M | $396M | $1,065M | $389M |
| Buffer Reset: November | ($13M) | ($187M) | ($118M) | ($135M) | $951M |
Individual Fund Flows (WTD)
| Ticker | Fund Name | WTD Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Top 5 Inflows | ||
| SFLR | Innovator Equity Managed Floor ETF | $19M |
| GMAY | FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF – May | $15M |
| BMAR | Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF – March | $12M |
| BUFR | FT Vest Laddered Buffer ETF | $11M |
| BMAY | Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF – May | $9M |
| Top 5 Outflows | ||
| GSEP | FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF – September | ($11M) |
| UMAR | Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF – March | ($11M) |
| UDEC | Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF – December | ($10M) |
| UJAN | Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF – January | ($9M) |
| UFEB | Innovator U.S. Equity Ultra Buffer ETF – February | ($9M) |
League Tables
The competitive landscape remains top-heavy, dominated by two key players. FT Vest maintains the largest market share with $44.91 Billion in AUM, and they also led the week in flows, capturing $98 Million. Innovator is the solid number two with $33.44 Billion in AUM, though they experienced a slight outflow this week, shedding $15 Million.
Top 5 Issuers by AUM
| Issuer | # of ETFs | AUM | Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| FT Vest | 119 | $44.91B | 49.09% |
| Innovator | 158 | $33.44B | 36.55% |
| Allianz | 58 | $5.63B | 6.16% |
| AB Funds | 3 | $1.60B | 1.75% |
| Pacer | 17 | $1.32B | 1.44% |
Issuer Flows (WTD)
| Issuer | WTD Flow | 1M Flow | 3M Flow | YTD Flow | 1Y Flow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 3 Inflows | |||||
| FT Vest | $98M | $586M | $2.02B | $2.92B | $5.91B |
| PGIM | $26M | $74M | $0.26B | $0.44B | $0.75B |
| TrueShares | $1M | $165M | $0.24B | $0.25B | $0.37B |
| Top 3 Outflows | |||||
| Innovator | -$15M | $513M | $1.41B | $2.22B | $4.50B |
| Allianz | -$4M | $63M | $0.19B | $0.34B | $0.68B |
| iShares | -$4M | -$191M | ($0.15B) | ($0.07B) | $0.08B |
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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.
