Q1 ETF total assets shrank by over 1 trillion! Some companies are bucking the trend and "attracting funds"

The first quarter of 2026 has just wrapped up, and the performance report of the public mutual fund ETF market has come to light.

According to Wind data, as of the end of the first quarter, the total size of ETFs across the entire market was about 4.99 trillion yuan, down about 1.03 trillion yuan from the end of last year.

Although broad-market (broad index) categories have become the main drag, some companies still delivered growth against the trend. Among them, Haitong (Haitong) Fund’s ETF size increased by more than 30 billion yuan in the first quarter, ranking first in the industry; Cathay Fund’s increase exceeded 16 billion yuan, and its total size successfully broke through the 300 billion yuan mark; Yongying Fund’s increase was over 14 billion yuan, placing third.

From the product side, theme-based ETFs such as power grid equipment, short-term notes (short融), gold, and satellite communications have become the main directions for capital inflows, replacing traditional broad-market varieties. This shows that in a choppy market, investors’ preferences are accelerating their shift toward specific sub-sectors and defensive assets.

Overall shrinkage of more than 1 trillion yuan—these companies “pull in money” against the trend

Wind data shows that as of March 31, 2026, the ETF products of 58 fund management firms across the entire market had a combined size of about 4.99 trillion yuan, down about 1.03 trillion yuan from the end of 2025, with a decline of more than 1 trillion yuan. Market participants analyze that this round of AUM contraction was mainly driven by large-scale redemptions from broad-market ETFs, which is closely related to large capital adjusting its holdings structure behind the scenes.

Against the backdrop of an overall downward trend, many fund companies still grew against the market, demonstrating strong “fund-pulling” capabilities. Haitong (Haitong) Fund became the biggest winner in the first quarter, with ETF assets up 49.9k yuan; its total size rose to 10.3k yuan. Cathay Fund followed closely, with growth of 49.9k yuan; its total size surged past the 300 billion yuan level and reached 10.3k yuan in total. Yongying Fund ranked third with an increment of 30.64B yuan, and its total size rose to 160.67B yuan. In addition, companies such as Huaan Fund, Tianhong Fund, and Bosera Fund also recorded positive AUM growth of more than 5 billion yuan in the first quarter.

From the perspective of individual products, in the first quarter there were two ETFs whose sizes grew by more than 20 billion yuan. Among them, the Huaxia CSI Electric Grid Equipment Thematic ETF led the market with an increment of 16.69B yuan; its size at quarter-end reached 303.14B yuan. The Haitong (Haitong) CSI Short-Term Notes ETF came next, with growth of 14.64B yuan and total size breaking through 90 billion yuan. In addition, five products—including Huaan Gold ETF, Haitong (Haitong) SSE Urban Investment Bond ETF, and Yongying Guozheng Commercial Satellite Communications Industry ETF—saw their sizes increase by more than 10 billion yuan each.

It is worth noting that among the top 20 ETFs by size growth ranking, thematic categories occupy the vast majority of seats, covering multiple sub-directions such as power grid equipment, satellite communications, semiconductor materials and equipment, chemicals, and non-ferrous metals. Meanwhile, gold ETFs collectively strengthened—gold products under Huaan, Cathay, Bosera, E Fund, and Huaxia all recorded growth of several tens of billions yuan, indicating that in a choppy market, funds are more inclined to gamble around the two main themes of “defensive + thematic.”

The ETF top-tier structure remains stable, and competition on product line differentiation intensifies

Looking at overall AUM rankings of fund managers, the top-tier effect in the ETF market remains evident.

Wind data shows that as of March 31, 2026, Huaxia Fund continued to stand first in the industry with an ETF size of 26.2B yuan, and its number of products reached 122. E Fund followed closely with 30.09B yuan in ETF size and 125 products. Huatai-PineBridge Fund ranked third with 20.69B yuan, with 56 products. Cathay Fund and Southern Fund, with 678.58B yuan and 630.3B yuan respectively, both entered the top five. ETFs managed by companies including Jim (嘉实), GF (广发), Bosera, Fubon (富国), Huabao (华宝), and Huaan also all had ETF sizes exceeding 200 billion yuan. A total of 16 companies had ETF sizes above 100 billion yuan.

From the standpoint of product allocation, two trends emerged in the ETF market in the first quarter: first, broad-market ETFs faced capital outflows, while industry thematic ETFs, bond ETFs, and commodity ETFs (such as gold) became safe harbors for capital; second, leading companies accelerated differentiated competition. For example, Huaxia moved ahead in laying out emerging themes such as power grid equipment and free cash flow, while Cathay continued to focus on areas such as semiconductor materials and equipment and gold. At the same time, fixed-income ETFs such as short-term notes and municipal investment bonds also attracted significant capital inflows, reflecting investors’ dual demand for both returns and safety in a choppy market.

Industry insiders believe that although the ETF market in the first quarter faced overall pressure, structural highlights cannot be overlooked. Some fund managers achieved growth against the trend by leveraging forward-looking product strategies and flexible capital operations. As market sentiment gradually stabilizes and investors deepen their understanding of sub-sector opportunities, in the future, capital flows in the ETF industry are expected to further concentrate toward high-quality managers, innovative themes, and products with defensive attributes. Industry competition will also shift from competing purely on scale to deeper contests on product differentiation and investment experience.

(Responsible editor: Li Yue)

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