A Record 1,397 ETFs Launched Worldwide in Five Months. The Busiest Issuer Just Shut Down 13 of Its Own
The ETF industry is setting records for new fund launches, yet the busiest issuer of new products just watched thirteen of its own funds fail to survive. Before you consider any new ETF, four questions can separate the keepers from…
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ETFGI says ETF issuers listed a record 1,397 new products worldwide through the end of May 2026. The issuer at the top of ETFGI’s launch rankings was Leverage Shares. That same brand is behind thirteen U.S. funds that Themes ETF Trust is shutting down because those funds couldn’t attract enough money.
If you’re close to retirement, the contrast raises a practical question. How much choice do you actually need, and how can you tell a fund built to last from one built to test the market?
Launches Have More Than Doubled Since 2022
ETFGI said that after 208 closures, the industry added a net 1,189 products. This year’s total beat the previous record of 1,063 launches at the same point in 2025. ETFGI reported only 656 launches through May 2022.
According to ETFGI, 336 providers launched new products across 33 exchanges. At the end of May, ETFGI reported 17,075 ETFs worldwide with 33,094 listings. These funds were run by 1,014 providers and listed on 85 exchanges in 66 countries.
Active Funds Lead a Crowded Product Pipeline
The United States led with 505 new listings. Asia Pacific excluding Japan followed with 377, and Europe had 267, per ETFGI.
By type, ETFGI reported 741 active ETFs, 423 equity ETFs and 91 fixed income ETFs among the new products. An active ETF has a manager who picks the investments instead of copying an index.
ETFGI ranked Leverage Shares first, with 94 launches. iShares came second with 48 and Global X third with 41. iShares belongs to BlackRock (NYSE:BLK | BLK Price Prediction), which reported $135 billion of iShares net inflows in the third quarter.
State Street (NYSE:STT) is launching quickly too. On the company’s October 14 earnings call, CFO John Woods said it rolled out 38 new products and solutions in the quarter, including 13 ETFs.
Leverage Shares Cuts Funds as U.S. Closures Hit a Record
ETFGI said the United States logged 110 closures through May, a record high for that period.
A single-stock leveraged ETF uses derivatives to deliver a multiple of one stock’s daily move. For these funds, that multiple was 2X. The board of Themes ETF Trust said it would close thirteen of them because of their “inability to attract sufficient investment assets.”
Themes ETF Trust said the funds were set to stop trading at the close on October 19, 2026, and the liquidation date is October 22, 2026. Our full report on the closures lists every affected fund.
Four Questions to Ask Before Buying Any New ETF
- Does it add something you lack? Ask yourself. If you already own a broad index fund, a new fund that holds many of the same stocks mostly adds another fee.
- Can it stay open? Check total assets and average daily trading volume. Too few assets were the stated reason for the Leverage Shares closures.
- Do you understand how it makes money? Leveraged funds reset every day. Over longer periods, their returns can differ from twice the underlying stock’s return, and they can lose money even when the stock rises. Funds that sell options often give up part of the upside.
- What happens if it closes down? You get out on the issuer’s schedule, not yours. Themes ETF Trust said liquidation payouts are taxable events, so a closure inside a taxable account can leave you with a tax bill.
For most investors, more ETFs mostly means more ways to make a mistake. Many retirement investors find that a handful of established, well-funded ETFs already cover what their portfolios need. ETFGI’s next launch count should show if new products are still coming faster than investors want them.
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