This issue of The Cerulli Edge—U.S. Monthly Product Trends analyzes mutual fund and exchange-traded fund (ETF) product trends as of September 2024 and assesses the responsible investing product landscape.

Highlights from this research:  

• At the end of September, mutual fund assets stood at $20.6 trillion, up 1.4% from August. Mutual funds continued to leak flows throughout the year, with $40.8 billion in September.

• ETF assets crossed the $10.0 trillion mark in net assets in September. ETF flows missed out on surpassing the $100 billion mark in September, generating $95.9 billion in flows.

• Concerns over greenwashing, political backlash, and underperformance have hurt overall responsible investing assets. As the landscape matures, product development has slowed, alongside a record number of recent mutual fund and exchange-traded fund (ETF) product closures. Despite these challenges, a broader range of products, structures, and asset classes are becoming available to investors. While anticipated demand from retail investors through advisor-sold channels has not materialized in a significant way, capital allocations from U.S. institutional investors remain solid.