BMO Annual ETF Outlook Report: Record Year for $10 Trillion Global ETF Industry Amid Continued Pandemic Volatility

• Canadian ETF industry reports second year of record-breaking flows, driven by equity ETFs
• BMO ETFs led the industry for the eleventh consecutive year with net new flows of nearly $10 billion in 2021
• Inflation is the dominant concern heading into 2022
• Trends to watch in 2022 include continued emphasis on ESG and Fixed Income                                                    

TORONTO, Jan. 31, 2022 /CNW/ - BMO Global Asset Management (BMO GAM) today published its annual ETF Outlook Report, reporting on the exchange traded fund (ETF) industry and key trends for 2022.

Assets grew globally and were driven by flows and stronger markets. At the end of December 2021, the Global ETF industry had 8,552 ETFs from 571 providers on 77 exchanges in 62 countries, and assets of US$10 trillion.¹

Industry Highlights: ETF Growth in Canada

• In 2021, the Canadian ETF industry reported its second year in a row of record numbers with $323 billion in assets, and $53 billion in net new flows²
• Nine ETFs reported more than $1 billion in new flows
• 202 new ETFs were launched setting another record, with one new provider entering the industry ²
• There are now 1177 tickers and 40 ETF providers ²
• In 2021, BMO ETFs led the industry for the eleventh consecutive year with net new flows of $9.6 billion; 22 BMO tickers reported inflows greater than $100 million³

"ETFs have played an important role in financial markets with record growth and volume during a tumultuous year. ETFs provide efficient access and liquidity across both broad and precise exposures as investors balance the stops and starts of the continued COVID-19 pandemic with strong equity market returns." said Mark Raes, Head of Product, BMO Global Asset Management Canada. "ETFs proved their value as market access vehicles once again, as Canada became the first country to launch a physical crypto ETF, and equities captured record breaking inflows. Inflation is the dominant concern heading into 2022 as investors look for sectors of the market that will benefit from increases in pricing while looking for fixed income innovation."

Trends for 2022

Megatrends: The progress innovative companies that are driving life-altering trends like genomics, fintech, and autonomous technology and next-gen internet are continuing to build.

Responsible Investing: Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing was a leading theme in 2021 and will continue to gain momentum. BMO GAM recently launched BMO MSCI ACWI Paris Aligned Climate Equity Index ETF (ZGRN) which is designed to reduce exposure to companies with higher physical and transition climate risk and increase exposure to companies pursuing opportunities arising from the transition to a lower-carbon economy.

Rotation in Factor Based ETFs: Investors expect that value should continue its recent outperformance versus growth, led by the continuing economic reopening as well as stronger historical performance during periods of increasing rates and elevated inflation.

Fixed Income: Investors, while holding broad fixed income exposures as portfolio anchors, have been using ETFs to position around increasingly hawkish central bank comments, inflation concerns, and economic reopening.

Inflation: With inflation continuing to be a headline statistic in 2022, an overweight to equities and/or non-traditional fixed income may be warranted.

From ten years ago, with just over $40 billion in assets across 230 tickers, to today's $323 billion in assets and close to 1200 tickers, ETFs have evolved from a hot topic to a mainstream investment. From dominant broad beta ETFs that provide market returns for investors, to precise ETFs that allow investors access and efficiency, ETFs have combined the best of exchange trading with the benefits of pooled investment products.

"Most importantly for investors, the maturation of the ETF industry has allowed new providers and new investors to confidently enter the market, and helped support products that best assist investor's portfolio construction, across asset classes and alternatives," continued Mr. Raes. "Part of being a successful ETF provider means being committed to educating investors and is something that is front and center for us at BMO ETFs."

BMO ETFs Weekly Market Insights Webinar

On Friday February 4^th Mark Raes will discuss the ETF Outlook Report on BMO ETFs' weekly Market Insights webinar. Register to join at www.etfmarketinsights.com 

To view the full report, please click here. For more information on BMO ETFs, visit: www.bmo.com/etfs.

⁽¹⁾ETFGI Industry Insights Report, December 31, 2021

⁽²⁾ National Bank, January 5, 2022

⁽³⁾ BMO Global Asset Management, December 31, 2021

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Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investments in exchange traded funds. Please read the ETF Facts or prospectus of the BMO ETFs before investing. Exchange traded funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

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Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this news release constitute forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, those identified by the expressions "expect", "intend", "will" and similar expressions to the extent they relate to the Fund, the Manager and/or the Advisor. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts but reflect the Fund's, the Manager's, and/or the Advisor's current expectations regarding future results or events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations. Although the Fund, the Manager, and/or the Advisor believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and, accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein. The Fund, the Manager and/or the Advisor undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statement or information whether as a result of new information, future events or other such factors which affect this information, except as required by law. 

About BMO Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
BMO Exchange Traded Funds has been a leading ETF provider in Canada for 11 years, with over 100 strategies and approximately 30 per cent market share in Canada. BMO ETFs are designed to stay ahead of market trends and provide compelling solutions to help advisors and investors. This includes a comprehensive suite of ETFs developed in Canada for Canadians, such as cost-effective core equity ETFs following market leading indexes, and a broad range of fixed income ETFs; solution-based ETFs responding to client demand; and innovation with smart beta ETFs, as well as combining active and passive investing with ETF series of award-winning active mutual funds.

About BMO Financial Group
Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly diversified financial services provider - the 8th largest bank, by assets, in North America. With total assets of $988 billion as of October 31, 2021, and a team of diverse and highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

SOURCE BMO Financial Group

Media Contact: Jeff Roman, Toronto, [email protected]:, [phone]