In the past two years, the scale has nearly doubled, and US ETFs are “hot and scorching.”

The US ETF industry is accelerating its expansion at an unprecedented pace. In 2026, all three key indicators—assets under management, capital inflows, and trading volume—are simultaneously either setting new records or nearing historic highs, and the industry ecosystem is entering a full-speed mode.

According to the latest assessment by Chris Lucas, Head of ETF business at Goldman Sachs, net inflows into US-listed ETFs have already surpassed $1 trillion so far this year, and full-year net issuance is expected to exceed $2 trillion. This would break the 2025 historical record by more than 33%. Meanwhile, total ETF trading volume in the first half surpassed $4 trillion, up 50% versus the same period in 2025.

Behind the continued surge of capital, the main drivers of this round of growth are US large-cap tech stocks, semiconductors/AI, emerging markets and Korea-themed themes, as well as actively managed ETFs. Actively managed ETFs have already attracted roughly $400 billion in funding so far this year—about 40% of total industry inflows—and this is about three times their market share of assets under management.

Assets nearing $1.6 trillion—almost doubling in two years

Total assets of US-listed ETFs have surpassed $1.6 trillion, nearly doubling over the past two years. Goldman Sachs believes that with current momentum supporting the move, reaching the $1.7 trillion mark by year-end is “within reach.”

This pace of growth is unprecedented in industry history. The rapid expansion in scale is driven jointly by capital inflows and rising asset prices; the two reinforce each other, propelling the industry to keep breaking upward and beyond.

So far this year, ETF industry capital inflows have not only been huge in magnitude, but also shown a high degree of persistence. Net inflows in June alone reached $193 billion, the second-highest monthly inflow in the historical data set compiled by Goldman Sachs.

Even more noteworthy is that monthly performance at near-record levels has become the norm. According to Goldman Sachs statistics, over the past seven months, the ETF industry experienced five of its largest monthly inflow figures in history—an unusually concentrated pattern.

From the perspective of capital flow direction, actively managed ETFs stand out particularly. Actively managed ETFs have received about $400 billion in inflows so far this year, accounting for nearly 40% of total industry inflows, while their asset base represents only about 13% of the overall figure. The rise of thematic ETFs focused on concentrated themes is seen as an important new trend for 2026, extending the logic of how the 2024 spot crypto ETF products opened a new channel for market access.

Trading volume surges by 50%—leveraged ETFs are the biggest variable

In the first half, the ETF ecosystem’s trading volume is running “at full throttle.” Average daily trading volume reached $325 billion, and total trading volume in June alone totaled $7 trillion—also the second-highest in history.

Leveraged ETFs are the core engine behind this round of the trading-volume surge. In June, the leveraged ETF complex posted a monthly record for nominal trading volume at $1.1 trillion, which is also up more than 50% versus the same period in 2025. If the leverage effect is translated into actual exposure—using a 3x leveraged product as an example—the total exposure generated by leveraged ETFs in June was close to $3 trillion, equivalent to about 40% of the total nominal trading volume of all US-listed ETFs in that month.

Currently, leveraged ETFs manage assets of about $175 billion, but their total actual exposure has already exceeded $430 billion. The ratio between the two underscores the amplifying effect that this product category has on overall market liquidity.

In global equity markets, the acceleration in trading volume is also clearly evident. The overall trading volume of mining ETFs has already exceeded the total for all of 2025; the two largest emerging-market ETFs—EEM and IEMG—have also come close to matching last year’s full-year levels in trading volume.

ETF count surpasses domestic listed companies—new product issuance accelerates

The number of US-listed ETFs has reached about 5,400, while the number of domestic listed companies is about 4,000. The ongoing “ETF surpasses stock count” trend continues to expand. As of this year to date, more than 770 new ETFs have launched, with 54% using derivative instruments and 33% classified as leveraged or inverse products.

Goldman Sachs expects that the rapid expansion of derivative applications and concentrated thematic products will be the industry’s core trend in the second half. As a large number of pending products gradually come into effect, the pace of new issuance is expected to remain high.

DRAM surpasses EWY—storage-themed ETF landscape reshaped

The capital migration effect brought by the rise of concentrated thematic ETFs is typically reflected in the storage-chip theme. The DRAM thematic ETF DRAM, focused on DRAM memory chips, has officially surpassed the Korea ETF EWY—which has a 26-year history—in total asset size.

Although EWY’s net asset value has risen by nearly 50% since April this year, it recorded net outflows of about $2 billion over the same period. Goldman Sachs points out that the overlap between EWY and DRAM holdings is about 46%, meaning that to a certain extent EWY had served as an alternative tool for investors to gain exposure to the international storage theme. When more precise thematic access channels emerge, capital shifts quickly and clearly—showing how rapidly the industry landscape can change after new market-access tools are introduced.

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