Assets in global exchange traded funds have soared to $15tn, powered by a stampede away from mutual funds that underscores how the vehicles are reshaping the asset management industry.

Investors have poured $1.7tn into ETFs this year, pushing the industry’s total assets up 30 per cent compared with 2023, according to data from research group ETFGI. The US has been at the centre of the influx of new cash, notching up inflows of more than $1tn as traders have sought to tap into a big rally in Wall Street equities.

The rush of inflows highlights how investors are turning to ETFs for a wider variety of strategies beyond “passive” index-tracking where the products initially made inroads in the early 1990s. Actively managed ETFs and those focusing on government and corporate debt are both gaining in popularity, eating away at an area traditionally dominated by mutual funds.