Tradeweb Exchange-Traded Funds Update - August 2018

The following data is derived from trading activity on the Tradeweb institutional European- and U.S.-listed ETF platforms. 

EUROPEAN-LISTED ETFs

Total traded volume
Despite subdued market volatility and the seasonal slowdown, total traded volume on the Tradeweb European ETF marketplace reached EUR 17.67 billion in August, up 50% year over year. Adriano Pace, head of equities (Europe) at Tradeweb, said: “2018 is set to be a record-breaking year for European ETF trading on Tradeweb. At the end of August, year-to-date platform activity already surpassed EUR 160 billion, just EUR 5.5 billion shy of the total notional traded throughout 2017.”

Volume breakdown 
Only a quarter of the volume executed in commodity-based ETFs was attributed to ‘buys’ in August. Fixed income ETFs also saw net selling during the month, with ‘sells’ outstripping ‘buys’ by ten percentage points. Activity in the asset class exceeded 40% of the overall flow for the fourth time in the platform’s history since February 2017, and March and September 2016.

Europe Equities proved to be the most aggressively-traded category among European-listed ETFs in August, beating its North America equivalent by EUR 865 million. More than EUR 2.1 billion was traded in Corporate Bonds, the most active fixed income segment during the month.

Top ten by traded volume 
Fixed income products dominated August’s list of most heavily-traded ETFs, with the iShares Core Corporate Bond UCITS ETF moving up one place from July to occupy the top spot. The fund’s objective is to track the performance of the Bloomberg Barclays Euro Corporate Bond Index as closely as possible. 


U.S.-LISTED ETFs 

Total traded volume 
Total consolidated U.S. ETF notional value traded in August 2018 rose 4.4% month over month and 7.3% year over year. 

Notional value traded on the Tradeweb institutional U.S. ETF platform in August 2018 totalled USD 7.06 billion, which represented growth of 106% from the prior-year period. As a percentage of total notional value, equities accounted for 67.7% and fixed income for 30.9% with the remainder comprised of commodity and specialty ETFs.

Volume breakdown 

Adam Gould, Head of U.S. Equities at Tradeweb, said: “Overall U.S. ETF market volumes rose from July to August, somewhat surprisingly given the season. Trading activity on the platform in the U.S. is outpacing the overall market. Although the majority of clients utilize us to request two-way quotes on intraday ETF trades, we continue to see accelerated growth with our NAV and Guaranteed Market on Close in comp functionality."

Top ten by traded volume
During the month, a total of 502 different tickers traded on the U.S. ETF platform. Among the top 10 tickers by notional value traded, half were international equity ETFs led by the iShares MSCI EAFE ETF. Also making the list were the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF, PIMCO Enhanced Short Maturity Active ETF and iShares Gold Trust IAU ETF.