Weekly Channel Summary
Thematic ETFs represent $398.5B in assets under management across 481 funds from 113 issuers. The channel continued its strong asset-gathering trend, attracting $1.14B in net inflows over the past week. This brings year-to-date net flows to an impressive $72.2B. Over the last twelve months, investors have allocated over $105.7B to thematic strategies.
This Week’s Performance Leaders and Laggards
Precious Metals funds led performance this week with a significant 12.93% gain, building on strong momentum over the past month. Health Innovation also posted a stellar week, rising 10.24% and pushing its year-to-date return above 52%. On the other end of the spectrum, Industrial Revolution was the worst-performing category, falling 4.71%. Sustainability-focused funds also struggled, declining by 3.92% for the week.
Category Performance Snapshot
| Category | WTD | 1 Month | 3 Month | 6 Month | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Precious Metals | 12.93% | 36.66% | 17.65% | -4.84% | 19.07% | 79.95% |
| Health Innovation | 10.24% | 18.67% | 45.20% | 51.01% | 52.36% | 86.66% |
| FinTech | 5.15% | 1.53% | -2.25% | 19.79% | 9.39% | 11.59% |
| Natural Resources | 4.64% | 13.14% | 3.47% | -0.77% | 18.04% | 47.43% |
| Multi-Sector | -0.40% | 3.76% | 4.12% | 16.13% | 15.59% | 25.50% |
| Evolving Consumer | -0.69% | 5.04% | 6.74% | 8.84% | 4.12% | 1.78% |
| Midstream & MLPs | -0.82% | 1.32% | 1.54% | 8.58% | 23.38% | 23.66% |
| Alternative Equity | -0.88% | 6.48% | 7.76% | 6.56% | -1.99% | -6.25% |
| Disruptive Tech | -2.85% | 1.79% | 5.08% | 34.03% | 30.79% | 43.76% |
| Infrastructure | -3.59% | -1.40% | -2.46% | 0.75% | 17.02% | 24.66% |
| Sustainability | -3.92% | -4.24% | -15.09% | -4.84% | 8.58% | 25.94% |
| Industrial Revolution | -4.71% | 6.78% | -3.88% | -3.66% | 8.00% | 19.96% |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by Weekly Performance
The week’s top individual performer was the First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF (CRPT), which surged an impressive 24.05%. Reflecting the strength in its category, the iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF (RING) also had a strong week, gaining 15.79%. Conversely, the Roundhill Neocloud ETF (NCLD) experienced the steepest decline, falling by 14.00%.
| Ticker | Fund Name | WTD Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Top Performers | ||
| CRPT | First Trust SkyBridge Crypto Industry & Digital Economy ETF | 24.05% |
| OWNB | Bitwise Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETF | 20.22% |
| BCOR | Grayscale Bitcoin Adopters ETF | 16.57% |
| RING | iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF | 15.79% |
| PMTL | First Trust Indxx Quality Precious Metals Miners ETF | 14.68% |
| Bottom Performers | ||
| NCLD | Roundhill Neocloud ETF | -14.00% |
| FOTO | Tuttle Capital Pure Play Photonics ETF | -12.12% |
| JEDI | Defiance Drone and Modern Warfare ETF | -8.79% |
| BZZ | Corgi Drones & Urban Air Mobility ETF | -8.60% |
| SPRX | Spear Alpha ETF | -8.55% |
Analyzing the Weekly Flows
Thematic ETFs attracted over $1.1B in net new assets this week, demonstrating continued investor interest. Disruptive Tech was the clear favorite, pulling in $629M despite the category posting a negative return for the week. Infrastructure funds also saw healthy demand, adding $168M. The Evolving Consumer category experienced the largest redemptions, with investors withdrawing $148M.
Category Flows Summary
| Category | Fund Count | AUM | 5 Day | 30 Day | 90 Day | YTD | 1 Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disruptive Tech | 92 | $109.48B | $629M | $4,245M | $23,077M | $38,986M | $51,314M |
| Multi-Sector | 52 | $31.20B | $235M | $537M | -$941M | $412M | $2,804M |
| Infrastructure | 48 | $65.38B | $168M | $366M | $4,626M | $16,765M | $22,514M |
| Sustainability | 28 | $7.72B | $80M | -$261M | -$472M | $881M | $1,747M |
| Industrial Revolution | 58 | $20.77B | $50M | -$174M | $757M | $7,110M | $9,353M |
| Health Innovation | 26 | $3.48B | $42M | $6M | $200M | $252M | $279M |
| FinTech | 27 | $4.35B | $38M | $50M | -$741M | -$654M | -$435M |
| Midstream & MLPs | 18 | $27.48B | $35M | $591M | $692M | $1,890M | $2,308M |
| Precious Metals | 16 | $54.69B | $14M | $242M | -$71M | -$1,035M | $2,225M |
| Alternative Equity | 9 | $2.57B | -$0M | $0M | $52M | $346M | $575M |
| Natural Resources | 57 | $57.97B | -$3M | -$308M | -$591M | $9,795M | $16,278M |
| Evolving Consumer | 50 | $13.40B | -$148M | -$482M | -$909M | -$2,518M | -$3,193M |
Top & Bottom 5 ETFs by 5-Day Flow
The First Trust Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart GRID Infrastructure Index (GRID) led all thematic funds, capturing $266M in net inflows. In contrast, the iShares U.S. Infrastructure ETF (IFRA) saw the week’s largest outflow of $252M. The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) also faced significant redemptions, shedding $159M over the period.
| Ticker | Fund Name | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|---|
| Inflows | ||
| GRID | First Trust Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart GRID Infrastructure Index | $266M |
| ALAI | Alger AI Enablers & Adopters ETF | $213M |
| XME | State Street SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF | $148M |
| GDXJ | VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF | $144M |
| BAI | iShares A.I. Innovation and Tech Active ETF | $141M |
| Outflows | ||
| IFRA | iShares U.S. Infrastructure ETF | -$252M |
| MAGS | Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF | -$159M |
| RING | iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF | -$158M |
| XHB | State Street SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF | -$106M |
| COPX | Global X Copper Miners ETF | -$93M |
Issuer League Table Update
Global X and iShares remain the dominant issuers in the thematic space, commanding 17.3% and 15.0% of the market share, respectively. First Trust had the most successful week in asset gathering, attracting $310M in net new capital across its fund lineup. On the other hand, iShares experienced the largest net redemptions for the week, with outflows totaling $148M.
Top 5 Issuers by AUM
| Brand | Fund Count | AUM | AUM Market Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global X | 38 | $68.96B | 17.30% |
| iShares | 32 | $59.57B | 14.95% |
| First Trust | 32 | $55.55B | 13.94% |
| VanEck | 20 | $50.26B | 12.61% |
| Roundhill | 13 | $32.60B | 8.18% |
Top & Bottom 3 Issuers by 5-Day Flow
| Brand | 5-Day Flow |
|---|---|
| Inflows | |
| First Trust | $310M |
| Alger | $213M |
| VanEck | $166M |
| Outflows | |
| iShares | -$148M |
| ARK | -$43M |
| Northern Trust | -$13M |
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.
