Key Takeaways
- European ETFs received EUR 47.3 billion of investor flows in July, up 28% from June.
- Global large-cap blend equity and US large-cap blend equity ETFs received the lion’s share of flows.
- In the year to the end of July, equities accounted for 76.5% of all ETF flows.
A sharp drawdown on the Nasdaq in July wasn’t enough to shake European ETF investors’ enthusiasm for US large-cap equities and the AI-driven cycle.
Last month, the European ETF market gathered EUR 47.3 billion of flows, up from EUR 36.8 billion in June and bringing year-to-date flows to just under EUR 266 billion. This is a market firmly poised to mark yet another annual record high in flows. However, total assets barely moved, holding at EUR 3.22 trillion in July compared with EUR 3.23 trillion in June.
The combination of strong inflows and flat assets tells a story of investor conviction that ran ahead of market performance. One of the main culprits was a soft patch in US equities—the S&P 500 closed roughly flat, and the Nasdaq 100 dropped 6.6% as traders trimmed overweight bets on tech. Bond markets didn’t have a good month either. Capital losses across equity and bond markets essentially canceled out the new money coming in.
Investors Embrace More US Exposure
If there was ever a moment for European investors to consider a tactical rotation away from growth and into cheaper value stocks, July’s tech stumble was it. But they didn’t take it. Instead, their response to the AI jitters was an emphatic embracing of more exposure.
Equity ETFs gathered EUR 34.2 billion for the month, up from EUR 29.9 billion in June and totaling EUR 203.4 billion so far into the year—76.5% of all ETF flows. Money kept flowing into the same US-heavy, tech-tilted playbook: global large-cap blend funds (where the US often makes up two-thirds of the portfolio) took in EUR 10.1 billion, while US large-cap blend strategies alone drew EUR 8.6 billion.
The clearest sign of unshaken conviction: the single worst-performing equity category in July in terms of flows was global large-cap value, which shed EUR 539 million. Investors weren’t just staying in growth—they were actively pulling out of the alternative. The Nasdaq July wobble barely registered as a warning sign.
Flows by Broad Asset Class for the European ETF and ETC Market
ETF Flows Head to Euro Government Bonds
Fixed income had a solid month, with EUR 8.8 billion flows, up from EUR 7.7 billion in June and totaling EUR 47.7 billion—about 18% of all 2026 flows—for the year so far. The bulk went to the safest end of the spectrum: Euro-denominated government bond ETFs pulled in close to EUR 1.5 billion, and US Treasury ETFs added EUR 655 million.
The more interesting subplot is the rise of CLO ETFs. Tucked inside the catch-all “Other Bond” category, collateralized loan obligation funds attracted EUR 515 million in July alone and EUR 2.4 billion since January—a niche product quietly building real scale. Fixed-term bond ETFs, popular with investors wanting bondlike maturity dates, added another EUR 348 million in the month and EUR 2.5 billion year-to-date.
iShares Brings in EUR 15 Billion
Among providers, iShares extended its lead as Europe’s flow magnet, hauling in close to EUR 15 billion in July alone—more than double its nearest rival. Xtrackers, which pulled in EUR 7.3 billion and Vanguard, EUR 7 billion, rounded out the podium, while State Street was the month’s outlier, shedding EUR 1.1 billion in outflows.
This article is taken from the Europe ETF Monthly Fund Flows Roundup.
