Canadian investors poured $17.7 billion into ETFs in September while mutual funds recorded their first net redemptions in 16 months
Canada's exchange-traded fund industry notched its sixth consecutive monthly asset record in September 2026, even as mutual funds snapped a lengthy run of positive flows, according to new data from the Securities and Investment Management Association (SIMA).
ETF assets climbed to $936.2 billion at the end of September, up $12.0 billion or 1.3 per cent from August. Net sales for the month came in at $17.7 billion, driven largely by equity funds, which attracted $11.5 billion - nearly two-thirds of total ETF inflows. It was the sixth straight month that ETF assets closed at a fresh all-time high.
Mutual fund assets, meanwhile, slipped to $2.786 trillion from August's record of $2.802 trillion, a decline of $15.6 billion or 0.6 per cent. Net redemptions totalled $0.3 billion, ending a 16-month run of positive net sales that had been one of the defining trends in Canadian fund distribution throughout 2025 and into 2026.
The turnaround in mutual fund flows was concentrated in money market funds, which posted net redemptions of $289 million. Long-term fund flows were essentially flat, with modest outflows from equity and bond categories offsetting continued inflows into specialty funds.
On the ETF side, September extended a pattern that has dominated the year. With equity ETF year-to-date inflows surpassing $100 billion for the first time through the first nine months of 2026, the category is on pace to substantially surpass any previous annual record.
Year-to-date ETF net sales reached $155.5 billion through September, compared with $86.1 billion over the same period in 2025 — an increase of approximately 81 per cent. Financial advisors tracking Canadian fund flows can follow the shifting landscape in Wealth Professional's ETF coverage which has documented month-by-month records throughout 2026.
Mutual fund net sales also remained well ahead of last year on a cumulative basis, despite September's dip. Year-to-date inflows of $38.6 billion through September compare with $29.6 billion over the same period in 2025, a gain of approximately 31 per cent. Long-term mutual fund net sales year-to-date stood at $41.0 billion, versus $24.2 billion through September 2025.
The divergence between the two categories in September reflects a dynamic that has taken hold over the past year: ETFs continuing to capture the majority of new asset-gathering momentum while mutual funds, even in months of modest net outflows, maintain a substantially larger total asset base.
For context on how the two fund vehicles have been competing for flows this year, earlier WPC reporting on the July 2026 data noted that ETF net sales of $18.3 billion that month ranked as the fourth-highest monthly total on record.
The September data follows a year in which the industry set multiple benchmarks. SIMA's 2025 annual report, released in January 2026, confirmed that ETF net sales exceeded $100 billion for the first time in a calendar year in 2025, while mutual fund net sales doubled from 2024 levels. The September 2026 figures suggest that pace is being maintained (or surpassed) heading into the final quarter of the year.
SIMA's data covers approximately 87 per cent of total mutual fund industry assets and approximately 80 per cent of total ETF industry assets, with estimated data used to compile comprehensive industry totals.
The Securities and Investment Management Association represents investment fund managers, investment and mutual fund dealers, capital markets participants, and professional service providers overseeing approximately $4.5 trillion in assets for more than 20 million investors across Canada.
