Leveraged Semis and Health Innovation Funds Surge

ARK led all issuers in absolute terms on the day, pulling in $3.25B, a figure that dwarfs its already-strong 5-Day ($2.98B) and 30-Day ($3.23B) totals and pushes its relative inflow to 18.75% of AUM, the top reading among issuers with at least $50M in assets. Direxion ($2.59B) and FT Vest ($1.89B) also posted large single-day absolute inflows, both tracking ahead of their 30-Day paces of $5.32B and $2.79B respectively. Among the largest managers, Vanguard added $3.09B while iShares ($4.19B), Invesco ($3.41B), WisdomTree ($1.70B) and SPDR ($1.12B) all registered outflows for the day despite strong 30-Day and YTD totals. On the smaller end, Russell Investments (12.84% of AUM) and PL (10.76%) posted notable relative gains, while Corgi (-9.93%), T-Rex (-2.67%) and Thornburg (-2.36%) saw the steepest relative redemptions, and T. Rowe Price’s $264.8M outflow stood out as the lone sizable absolute loss outside the mega-issuer tier.

Total net flows across all ETFs reached $3.72B on the day, a fraction of the $59.05B 5-Day and $203.67B 30-Day totals but consistent with the sustained pace of 2026 inflows that has pushed YTD volume to $1,666.61B. Non-Traditional products were the standout asset class, gathering $5.16B on the day versus $12.33B over the past week, more than offsetting a $4.33B outflow from Equity funds. Fixed Income added $2.15B and Commodity funds gained $775.3M, both extending their 30-Day trends of $79.70B and $1.93B respectively. At the category level, Non-Traditional: Leverage | Inverse – Equity ($2.85B), Non-Traditional: Buffer – Equity ($1.97B) and Equity: Thematic – Health Innovation ($1.94B) led inflows, while Equity: U.S. Large Cap – Blend (-$3.92B), Equity: U.S. Large Cap – Growth (-$2.97B) and Equity: U.S. Small Cap – Blend (-$2.34B) were the heaviest laggards.

Within U.S. size and style, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) led inflows with $841.7M, followed by the Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF (VTV) at $557.5M and the Alger Concentrated Equity ETF (CNEQ) at $296.9M. On the outflow side, the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) shed $4.40B, the largest redemption in the category, followed by the Invesco QQQ Trust Series I (QQQ) at $3.42B and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) at $2.47B. The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) also lost $658.9M, rounding out a day dominated by large-cap redemptions across core broad-market exposures.

Ex-U.S. size and style flows were comparatively modest, with the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS) leading inflows at $140.9M, trailed by the JPMorgan International Value ETF (JIVE) at $66.0M and the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ex China ETF (EMXC) at $46.8M. WisdomTree products dominated the outflow side, led by the WisdomTree International Hedged Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IHDG) at $418.2M, the WisdomTree International Quality Dividend Growth Fund (IQDG) at $134.9M, and the WisdomTree International High Dividend Fund (DTH) at $116.7M. The iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS) also lost $112.5M, extending a day where dividend-growth and total international strategies faced pressure relative to broader market-cap funds.

Sector flows favored Financials and Health Care, with the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) adding $571.7M and the State Street SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) close behind at $564.9M, while the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) gathered $310.0M and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) brought in $279.4M. Semiconductor exposure diverged sharply within the sector space, as the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) saw the category’s largest outflow at $1.57B, far exceeding losses from the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) at $274.3M and the State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU) at $199.9M. The First Trust Nasdaq Semiconductor ETF (FTXL) also lost $68.8M, underscoring the split between semiconductor-focused flows at the fund level versus the broader Equity: Sector – Information Technology category, which shed $1.40B overall.

Country-specific flows were led by the iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ), which added $354.1M, far outpacing the next-largest inflows from the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Canada ETF (BBCA) at $46.7M and the iShares MSCI Australia ETF (EWA) at $46.1M. The WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund (DXJ) posted the day’s largest regional outflow at $815.3M, well ahead of the Invesco China Technology ETF (CQQQ) at $103.2M. Overall regional activity was modest in absolute terms compared to sector and size/style categories, with the Equity: Region – Country Specific category seeing $343.8M in net outflows for the day.

Thematic flows were dominated by ARK’s genomics and innovation strategies, with the ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (ARKG) drawing $1.94B and the ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) adding $1.31B, together accounting for the bulk of the $1.94B Equity: Thematic – Health Innovation category inflow. Other thematic inflows were comparatively small, led by the State Street SPDR S&P Global Natural Resources ETF (GNR) at $153.9M and the State Street SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) at $95.7M. On the outflow side, the Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) lost $131.7M and the Corgi Lithography & Semiconductor Photonics ETF (EUV) shed $82.0M, while the VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ) gave back $43.6M.

Fixed Income gathered $2.15B on the day, well within its longer-term trend of $79.70B over the 30-Day window, with short-duration and municipal funds leading inflows. The Vanguard 0-3 Month Treasury Bill ETF (VBIL) brought in $395.1M, the iShares National Muni Bond ETF (MUB) added $296.4M, and the iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) gathered $281.5M, alongside $261.8M into the iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG). Long-duration Treasuries diverged sharply, as the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) posted the category’s largest outflow at $1.06B, consistent with the Fixed Income: Taxable – Government Long category’s $1.18B daily redemption. The iShares MBS ETF (MBB) also lost $244.8M, further highlighting the pullback from longer-duration and securitized exposures.

Commodity funds added $775.3M on the day, extending a steady 30-Day trend of $1.93B, with precious metals once again leading the category. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) drew $685.1M and the SPDR Gold Minishares Trust (GLDM) added $164.3M, together consistent with the $757.8M Commodity: Focused – Precious Metals category inflow. The United States Oil Fund LP (USO) gathered a modest $31.5M, while on the outflow side the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) lost $53.8M and the iShares Gold Trust (IAU) gave back $23.4M despite the broader gold-fund demand.

Digital Asset products saw a net outflow of $96.6M on the day, a reversal from the $2.12B gathered over the trailing 30-Day period and a sharper pullback than the $529.8M weekly outflow. The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) led inflows with a modest $16.8M, followed by small additions to the Franklin XRP ETF (XRPZ) and the Fidelity Ethereum Fund ETF (FETH). Ethereum-linked products bore the brunt of the day’s redemptions, with the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) losing $44.4M and the Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF (ETHE) shedding $18.3M, while the Grayscale Zcash Trust (ZCSH) lost $14.8M.

Non-Traditional was the day’s standout asset class with $5.16B in net inflows, driven chiefly by the Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF (SOXL), which alone gathered $2.25B. Buffer strategies also drew substantial demand, with the FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF – October (FOCT) adding $1.10B and the FT Vest U.S. Equity Deep Buffer ETF – October (DOCT) bringing in $364.3M, consistent with the $1.97B Non-Traditional: Buffer – Equity category total. On the outflow side, the Direxion Daily 20+ Year Treasury Bull 3X ETF (TMF) lost $166.7M and the ProShares UltraPro Short QQQ (SQQQ) shed $112.0M, while the KraneShares Wahed Alternative Income Index ETF (KWIN) recorded a $62.1M outflow (may be the result of a custom rebalance).

Friday’s launch slate featured ten new funds, highlighted by the Tuttle – Rareview Humanoid Robotics ETF (HOID), which opened with $250.0K in assets. The remainder of the day’s debuts came entirely from Corgi, which launched a suite of nine fixed income ETFs spanning investment-grade corporates, Treasuries across multiple maturities, TIPS, and aggregate bond exposure, including the Corgi FTSE U.S. IG Corporate Bond ETF (IGB) and the Corgi FTSE U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF (AGGB), each starting with between $250.0K and $1.0M in assets. The group represents a broad build-out of Corgi’s fixed income lineup across the yield curve and credit spectrum, though all funds remain at nascent asset levels on their first trading day.