Tradeweb Exchange-Traded Funds Update – September 2025
The following data is derived from trading activity on the Tradeweb Markets institutional European- and U.S.-listed ETF platforms.
EUROPEAN-LISTED ETFs
Total traded volume
Trading activity on the Tradeweb European ETF marketplace amounted to EUR 70.4 billion in September. The percentage of transactions and notional volume completed via Tradeweb’s Automated Intelligent Execution (AiEX) tool registered at 94% and 29%, respectively.
Adam Gould, Global Head of Equities at Tradeweb, said: “September saw institutional clients embracing the request-for-quote (RFQ) protocol to efficiently transfer risk in European ETFs. During the month, platform activity rose by 20.8% year-over-year. Meanwhile, third-quarter volumes totalled EUR 175.2 billion, an increase of 7.3% compared to the same period last year.”
Volume breakdown
In September, equities remained the most actively-traded ETF asset class, comprising 70% of the overall platform flow. Once again, all ETF asset classes saw net buying, with ‘buys’ exceeding ‘sells’ for equity-, fixed income- and commodity-based funds by 24, 10 and 14 percentage points, respectively.
For the first time since June 2021, North America Equities was edged out as the most heavily-traded ETF category, with Global Equities narrowly taking the lead after both generated nearly EUR 16 billion in monthly volume.
Top ten by traded notional volume
In September, eight of the ten most actively-traded ETFs were equity-based, with the remainder being commodity-based funds. The Xtrackers MSCI World Financials UCITS ETF 1C, which offers exposure to global developed market equities that are constituent members of the MSCI World Index, occupied the top spot. The UBS MSCI ACWI SF UCITS ETF placed second, while the iShares MSCI USA ESG Enhanced CTB UCITS ETF came in third.
U.S.-LISTED ETFs
Total traded volume
Total consolidated U.S. ETF notional value traded in September reached USD 81.8 billion.
Adam Gould, Global Head of Equities at Tradeweb, said: “It was another strong month for trading activity on our U.S. institutional ETF platform, with volumes increasing by 37.9% year-over-year. It was also the third best-performing quarter on record, with USD 213.5 in traded notional in the third quarter of this year, an increase of 19.8% quarter-over-quarter.”
Volume breakdown
As a percentage of total notional value, equities accounted for 63% and fixed income for 32%, with the remainder comprising commodity and specialty ETFs.
Top ten by traded notional volume
In a reversal of August’s trend, seven of the top ten ETFs by traded notional volume in September were equity-based products, with the remainder being fixed income-based. The Vanguard 500 Index Fund ETF moved from second place to rank first, while the iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF rose from fourth to second.
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