Single-largest ETF trade as insto pulls $1b from iShares fund
The Australian exchange trade fund (ETF) industry saw its single-largest trade in August as an institutional investor withdrew $1 billion from an iShares fund.
In the latest BetaShares monthly ETF report, the firm said funds under management in the industry had been flat during August and ended the month at $130 billion while net new money was $0.6 billion.
However, it did see a large outflow of over $1.1 billion by an institutional investor from the iShares Core S&P ASX 200 ETF.
“It appears as though the vast majority of these outflows came from a single institutional client in what we believe to be the single largest trade in Australian ETF history. Notably, and as testimony to the liquidity of ETFs more generally, this trade occurred seamlessly and without causing any material market impact.”
While outflows were seen for the iShares fund, investors were not averse to Australian equities as the BetaShares Australia 200 ETF, Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF, SPDR S&P/ASX 50 and Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF were all among the funds with the top inflows.
It was better news for Magellan, which had seen outflows in recent months, as its Core ESG ETF was among the best-performing ETFs during August with returns of 16.7%.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
Recommended for you
Australian equities manager Datt Capital has built a retail-friendly version of its small-cap strategy for advisers, previously only available for wholesale investors.
The dominance of passive funds is having a knock-on effect on Australia’s M&A environment by creating a less responsive shareholder base, according to law firm Minter Ellison.
Morningstar Australasia is scrapping its controversial use of algorithm-driven Medalist ratings in Australia next year and confirmed all ratings will now be provided by human analysts.
LGT Wealth Management is maintaining a neutral stance on US equities going into 2026 as it is worried whether the hype around AI euphoria will continue.
