Key Takeaways
- Active ETFs attracted EUR 22.7 billion of net inflows in 2025, from EUR 52.5 billion in 2024.
- Equity strategies made up 71% of active ETF assets by the end of 2025.
- New providers including Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Fineco, Nordea, and M&G have joined the market.
The European active ETF market continued its strong momentum in 2025, nearing EUR 80 billion in assets and drawing increased interest from both investors and asset managers. Although still a small slice of the region’s overall ETF landscape—representing just 2.9% of total ETF assets—the segment has nearly tripled in size over the past two years, signaling meaningful structural adoption. However, compared with the United States—where active ETFs now represent around 11% of total ETF assets—Europe’s adoption is still modest.
Total assets reached EUR 78.4 billion at the end of December 2025, up from EUR 52.5 billion a year earlier. As in previous years, equity strategies account for the lion’s share: EUR 55.9 billion, or 71% of all active ETF assets. Active bond ETFs represent 22%, while allocation, money market, and alternative strategies make up the remainder.
Active ETFs attracted EUR 22.7 billion of net inflows in 2025 — EUR 14 billion into equity and EUR 6.4 billion into fixed income surpassing the EUR 18.4 billion gathered in 2024. Still, their share of total ETF flows dipped to 6.6%, compared with 7.8% the prior year, reflecting continued dominance of traditional passive exposures.
Goldman Sachs Among New Asset Managers to Join the Active ETF Market
2025 brought a notable diversification of issuers. Established leaders—JP Morgan, Fidelity, and Pimco—maintained their stronghold, but new providers including Goldman Sachs, Fineco, Nordea, HSBC, and M&G joined the market. Many of these firms historically avoided ETFs because of their association with passive, low‑cost index investing. That mindset is shifting as asset managers view ETFs as a powerful distribution channel and a way to broaden access to their active capabilities.
Still, competition has yet to meaningfully dent the dominance of the market leader. JP Morgan controls 47% of European active ETF assets, largely on the strength of its Research Enhanced Index range. Fidelity follows with a 10.4% share, and Pimco holds 6.7%.
New product activity surged as well. After years of relatively modest issuance—averaging about 10 launches annually—the market saw 50 launches in 2024 and a record 139 in 2025. Equity strategies continued to dominate issuance, but fixed-income activity accelerated sharply, with 49 launches in 2025 compared with just 12 the year before.
Discretionary Still Dominates Active ETFs
Morningstar’s new classification framework for active ETFs distinguishes between discretionary strategies—where managers rely primarily on judgment—and systematic strategies, which follow quantitative, rules‑based models.
Discretionary styles still dominate, accounting for 76.8% of assets, or EUR 60.2 billion. JP Morgan, Fidelity, and Pimco—all major market participants—sit firmly in this camp. However, systematic strategies are gaining traction, particularly in equities. Systematic equity ETFs attracted EUR 9.1 billion of inflows in 2025, up from just EUR 1.1 billion in 2024. By contrast, discretionary equity ETFs drew EUR 4.8 billion, down from EUR 13.5 billion the prior year.
In fixed income, the discretionary approach remains entrenched, gathering EUR 5.9 billion in 2025, compared with just EUR 500 million for systematic bond ETFs. Yet the range of offerings is widening. Active fixed‑income ETFs are expanding meaningfully into new segments, including CLOs, mortgage‑backed securities, high yield, and emerging‑markets debt, broadening the opportunity set for investors seeking differentiated bond exposures through the ETF wrapper.
What’s Next for Europe’s Active ETF Market?
With rising competition, style diversification, and evolving investor expectations, Europe’s active ETF market is entering a new phase. Morningstar’s updated classification, powered by large‑language‑model analysis with expert oversight, aims to bring greater clarity to this growing segment, helping investors better compare strategies and understand whether a fund’s edge derives from discretionary insight or systematic design.
A more crowded and diverse product landscape can offer meaningful opportunities, but it also increases the importance of evaluating an ETF’s investment process, expected active risk, style consistency, and role within an overall asset‑allocation framework.
This article is a digest of the Europe Active ETF Trends written by Monika Calay, Mara Dobrescu, José Garcia Zarate, Natalia Wolfstetter, and Claire Zhang.
