Europe Open-End and ETF Flows for Q3 2025

European funds gathered EUR 165 billion in the third quarter of 2025, up more than a third from EUR 121 billion in the second quarter. That brings flows for the first three quarters of 2025 to EUR 452 billion, substantially more than the EUR 275 billion in the same period of 2024, and 5 times more than the EUR 86 billion for same period in 2023. Declining inflation and subsequent interest rate cuts have provided tailwinds for global markets overall.

This article is adapted from the recent report published by Morningstar Manager Research. The Morningstar European ETF and ETC Asset Flows report is available to download for free.

Equity funds brought in just EUR 30 billion in the third quarter. This was the lowest quarterly figure since 2023, but it still continued a seven-quarter trend of positive flows. Bond funds attracted a staggering EUR 118 billion, the highest figure in three years. While bond spreads remain on the tighter end of historical levels, higher interest rates continue to keep yields in attractive territory. Commodities gained EUR 10 billion in flows for the third quarter. That's the biggest quarterly inflow in over three years. The bulk of the money was spent on gold products.

Property funds relinquished EUR 2 billion in flows during the third quarter, marking a three-year streak of consecutive quarterly outflows. The sector has been penalized by high production costs, high mortgage rates, and spillover effects from China's 2021 economic downturn.

Thematic funds registered EUR 21 billion of outflows in the third quarter. Thematic funds have posted outflows for 10 consecutive quarters, shedding EUR 106

billion in assets over the last three years through the third quarter of 2025.

The flows data in the third quarter were strongly affected by a EUR 13 billion one-off outflow from the BlackRock ACS Climate Transition Screened and Optimised World Equity fund, although these assets were redirected within the firm to a private mandate.

Funds in the broad social theme group experienced aggregate outflows of EUR 0.8 billion, led by divestments from consumer-themed strategies. However, it was not all bad news. Within this broad group, security-themed funds continued to attract inflows, reflecting ongoing investor interest amid continued geopolitical tensions. The category saw EUR 1.3 billion in the third quarter, bringing year-to-date inflows to EUR 8.2 billion. WisdomTree Europe Defense ETF led the way, with EUR 1.1 billion gathered in the third quarter.

Technology funds posted EUR 1.1 billion of outflows overall in the third quarter, yet funds investing in artificial intelligence and big data remained in demand, attracting EUR 577 million. Xtrackers Al & Big Data UCITS ETF led the segment.

Cybersecurity funds also posted positive, though more modest, inflows during the quarter.

Active ETFs gathered EUR 6.3 billion in the third quarter, up from EUR 4.5 billion in the second quarter. This represented 7.0% of all flows into ETFs and ETCs for the quarter. Equity strategies raised EUR 3.7 billion, while EUR 2.3 billion was allocated to bond products. 

Assets in active ETFs made up EUR 63.4 billion at the close of the third quarter, representing 2.5% of all assets invested in ETFs and ETCs in Europe. JP Morgan holds a commanding market share of active ETF assets, at 55.1%, while Schroder made its debut in the third quarter with newly launched global equity and bond strategies.

The mix of macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical volatility, and a weaker US dollar has pushed flows into precious-metals funds to record-highs in 2025—EUR 8.9 billion in the third quarter alone, a record-high in the quarterly series, and EUR

17 billion for the year to date, while the Morningstar Global Gold Index has delivered a remarkable 121% return (to the end of September 2025).

Physical gold funds dominated commodity flows, with iShares, Invesco, and Pictet funds collectively accounting for 55% of the category's flows this quarter.

Investor appetite for digital assets remained strong in the third quarter, with EUR 1 billion in inflows and bitcoin up 22% for the year to date. WisdomTree Physical Solana stood out, gathering EUR 411 million, signaling an expanding interest in the space among investors. As of Oct. 8, 2025, UK retail investors can access cryptocurrency ETPs-read our review of the European Crypto ETP market for additional insights.

Robust inflows to commodity and crypto funds have come against the backdrop of notable US dollar weakness for the year to date, reflecting shifting monetary policy expectations and concerns over fiscal deficits.

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