State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) has seen a 100 per cent rise in funds under management (FUM) for its exchange-traded funds (ETF) products, with assets reaching $2.65 billion over the year to 31 March 2010.
SSgA's ETF products - SPDR S&P/ASX 200, SPDR S&P/ASX 50 and SPDR S&P/ASX 200 Listed Property Fund - now account for more than 80 per cent of total ETF assets offered in Australia.
Retail investors incorporating ETFs into their self-managed superannuation fund portfolios has been a key factor driving asset flows in Australia, SSgA head of global structured products Asia Pacific Susan Darroch said.
"Australians have a pressing need to ensure they have enough savings for retirement and ETFs, which are an efficient, low-cost, diversified and liquid investment purchased on the ASX [Australian Securities Exchange] similar to traditional shares, are a natural fit for a core holding in local equity portfolios," she said.
"Institutions and retail investors pay the same low fees to gain exposure to simple index exposure with SPDR ETFs."
Darroch said there was also considerable overseas demand for ETFs, with investors from 29 different countries globally investing in the SPDR S&P/ASX 200.
"Large global investors are taking advantage of the SPDR 200 to gain exposure to Australia's resources sector and indirect exposure to Chinese economic growth," she said.
Total FUM of all ETFs listed on the ASX had soared 150 per cent to $3.28 billion by the end of March 2010, compared with $1.3 billion in March 2009, according to ASX data.
