As the domestic stock market gains momentum, the net assets of stock-type exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have surpassed 200 trillion won for the first time. Overall net assets have also exceeded 450 trillion won.
According to financial information provider FnGuide, as of May 7, the total net assets of all domestic ETFs reached 456 trillion won. Of this, the net assets of domestic stock-type ETFs, which invest in companies listed in South Korea, amounted to 212 trillion won, marking the first time this figure has exceeded 200 trillion won.
Among the 1,099 ETFs available (including domestic stock, foreign stock, domestic bond, and mixed types), there are 413 domestic stock-type ETFs. The net assets of domestic stock-type ETFs were only around 40 trillion won at the end of 2024, but surged to 93 trillion won last year and have rapidly approached 200 trillion won in just about four months this year.
The net assets of domestic stock-type ETFs account for 3.47% of the KOSPI market capitalization of 6,138 trillion won, reaching an all-time high. This proportion was only 1.99% at the end of 2023 and remained at 2.08% in December 2024, but has jumped by 0.81 percentage points this year alone after ending last year at 2.68%.
Domestic stock-type ETFs represent 46.6% of all ETFs. As the KOSPI continues to set new all-time highs, funds have rapidly flowed back into domestic stock-type ETFs. This trend indicates a clear shift in investment demand from overseas assets to the domestic market.
New investors, often referred to as 'stock beginners,' are actively entering the rising market through domestic stock-type ETFs, which are seen as more accessible due to their diversification benefits compared to individual stock investments. ETFs allow investors to participate in the overall market with a smaller amount of capital.
As of the end of April, there were 302,669 investors under the age of 20 investing in ETFs through the five major securities firms, a 37% increase compared to the end of last year. This suggests that younger investors are opting for index and theme-based ETFs to capitalize on market uptrends rather than selecting individual stocks. The expansion of ETF investments in retirement markets, such as pension funds, also appears to be driving the increase in net assets.
Additionally, the market is expected to grow further with the upcoming launch of single-stock leveraged ETFs on May 22. Park Woo-yeol, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp, stated, "With Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix 2x ETFs already listed and traded on overseas exchanges, we expect to address the outflow of leveraged investment demand caused by regulatory asymmetries."
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.