Assets invested in exchange-traded ESG products surpass US$100B

On a global scale, there is now more than US$100 billion invested in ETFs and ETPs that focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, according to statistics from London-based research firm ETFGI.

Total assets invested by the end of July reached US$101 billion, up 14.7% from the US$88 billion invested in ESG products at the end of June.

ESG products saw net inflows of US$6.76 billion last month, “bringing year-to-date net inflows to a record US$38.78 billion” — already eclipsing the US$26.71 billion that ESG products gathered in all of 2019, ETGFI reported.

ESG products domiciled in Europe led the way, accounting for 51.6% of overall assets. U.S.-domiciled funds came second at 40.1%.

ETFGI noted “the number and diversity of [ESG] products have increased steadily.” Around the globe, there were nearly 400 products at the end of July with more than 1,000 listings from 92 fund providers in 25 countries.

The research firm added that confusion persists “around what constitutes an ESG fund.” ETFGI said it uses a classification system that organizes products into categories, “including core ESG products and theme-based groups, such as Clean/Alternative Energies and Gender Diversity.”

Earlier this month, ETFGI reported that total assets invested in ETFs and ETPs reached a record US$6.66 trillion in July.

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