ETF Volumes Spike to $388 Billion Driven by Sell-Off in Growth Equities & Crypto

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Macro Summary

The ETF market closed the session with a total trading volume of approximately $388.1B, representing a significant activity level at 149% of the 30-day average. The day’s narrative was dominated by a sharp “Risk-Off Deleveraging” theme. Investors flocked to defensive havens, evidenced by heavy activity in Commodities (Precious Metals) and Alternative Volatility products, while Digital Assets and Equity sectors suffered broad-based selling pressure.

Asset Class Volume 30D Avg. % of 30D Avg.
Equity $267.3B $179.4B 149%
Fixed Income $38.9B $27.3B 143%
Commodities $23.6B $13.9B 171%
Digital Asset $8.1B $5.8B 140%
Currencies $134.7M $70.0M 192%
Alternatives $2.6B $855.0M 306%
Non-Traditional $47.0B $32.2B 146%
Multi-Asset $344.1M $191.3M 180%

Equity

Equity volume reached $267.3B (149% of ADV) as broad selling hit nearly every sub-category. Large Cap Growth was particularly active (170% activity) with significant outflows, while Precious Metals miners saw a massive speculative bid, surging over 6% on the day.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Equity: Thematic – FinTech 287% $267.8M -4.38%
Equity: Thematic – Industrial Revolution 228% $553.7M -1.67%
Equity: Thematic – Natural Resources 205% $2.2B +0.32%
Equity: Thematic – Precious Metals 200% $6.0B +6.14%
Equity: Thematic – Sustainability 178% $235.7M -1.31%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
BKIE BNY Mellon International Equity ETF 810% $34.1M -1.66%
SPGM SPDR Portfolio MSCI Global Stock Market ETF 790% $59.3M -1.84%
GVAL Cambria Global Value ETF 780% $30.3M +0.29%
EUAD Select STOXX Europe Aerospace & Defense ETF 647% $134.0M +0.09%
SPYX State Street SPDR S&P 500 Fossil Fuel Reserves Free ETF 534% $24.0M -2.11%
SMIN iShares MSCI India Small Cap ETF 458% $29.6M -2.34%
EDIV SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Dividend ETF 422% $20.7M +0.11%
IVW iShares S&P 500 Growth ETF 420% $1.1B -2.21%
IYF iShares U.S. Financials ETF 418% $170.8M -2.22%
IDEQ Lazard International Dynamic Equity ETF 410% $15.6M -0.80%

Fixed Income

Fixed Income volume was robust at $38.9B. Long-duration Treasuries (TLT) saw massive activity as yields softened, while Municipal High Yield emerged as a significant outlier with over 240% relative activity.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Fixed Income: Taxable – Emerging 340% $277.2M -0.24%
Fixed Income: Municipal – High Yield 242% $298.7M -0.46%
Fixed Income: Taxable – Government Long 190% $7.8B -1.20%
Fixed Income: Taxable – Preferred Stock 185% $493.0M -0.55%
Fixed Income: Taxable – Core Enhanced 177% $931.3M -0.35%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
HTRB Hartford Total Return Bond ETF 3561% $234.6M -0.19%
SYSB iShares Systematic Bond ETF 943% $66.0M -0.40%
CGHM Capital Group Municipal High-Income ETF 789% $70.5M -0.29%
BKAG BNY Mellon Core Bond ETF 543% $41.7M -0.35%
EBND SPDR Bloomberg Emerging Markets Local Bond ETF 522% $32.8M -0.54%
JSCP JPMorgan Short Duration Core Plus ETF 489% $45.1M -0.03%
BILZ PIMCO Ultra Short Government Active ETF 432% $78.8M +0.01%
EMLC VanEck J. P. Morgan EM Local Currency Bond ETF 410% $228.3M +0.13%
NEAR iShares Short Duration Bond Active ETF 366% $88.2M -0.02%
PGX Invesco Preferred ETF 347% $176.9M -0.87%

Commodities

Commodities witnessed extreme activity (171% of ADV) as the primary beneficiary of risk aversion. Precious Metals volume was massive at $22.1B with Gold products up nearly 4%. Natural Gas (UNG) saw an explosive 20% gain amid high turnover.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Commodity: Focused – Energy 192% $1.2B +3.39%
Commodity: Focused – Precious Metals 170% $22.1B +4.60%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
DBB Invesco DB Base Metals Fund 272% $23.8M -0.04%
HGER Harbor Commodity All-Weather Strategy ETF 269% $47.3M +1.36%
UNG United States Natural Gas Fund LP 262% $621.9M +20.17%
GLTR abrdn Physical Precious Metals Basket Shares ETF 255% $78.4M +3.86%
OUNZ VanEck Merk Gold ETF 225% $94.4M +3.82%
IAU iShares Gold Trust 217% $1.6B +3.88%
CPER United States Copper Index Fund 175% $57.8M -0.51%

Digital Asset

Digital Assets faced severe pressure, dropping over 8% as a class. Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs saw significant activity (140% of ADV) but with heavy downside price action, as Ethereum (ETHA) led the decliners with an 8.9% sell-off.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Digital Asset: Cryptocurrency – Ethereum 154% $2.2B -8.90%
Digital Asset: Cryptocurrency – Multicoin 147% $14.1M -7.20%
Digital Asset: Cryptocurrency – Bitcoin 136% $5.8B -5.79%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
EZBC Franklin Bitcoin ETF 193% $29.7M -6.23%
ETHA iShares Ethereum Trust ETF 171% $1.5B -8.93%
BITW Bitwise 10 Crypto Index ETF 160% $10.9M -6.85%
IBIT iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF 152% $3.8B -6.27%

Currencies

Currencies saw a spike in activity as investors repositioned into safe-haven FX. The Swiss Franc (FXF) was the standout, trading at nearly 5.5x its average volume with a 1.6% gain.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Currency 192% $134.7M +0.25%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
FXF Invesco CurrencyShares Swiss Franc Trust 547% $33.8M +1.63%
FXE Invesco CurrencyShares Euro Trust 398% $34.4M +1.08%

Alternatives

Alternatives saw the highest relative activity of any asset class (306% of ADV), driven almost entirely by extreme hedging activity in VIX-linked products. Leveraged Volatility ETFs (UVIX) surged 21% on massive turnover.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Alternative: Volatility – Short 326% $400.6M -4.61%
Alternative: Volatility – Long 316% $2.2B +10.42%
Alternative: Absolute Return – Managed Futures 132% $53.3M -0.36%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
UVIX 2x Long VIX Futures ETF 388% $504.7M +20.91%
VXX iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN 330% $705.9M +10.93%
SVOL Simplify Volatility Premium ETF 307% $20.1M -3.72%
UVXY ProShares Ultra VIX Short-Term Futures ETF 257% $696.3M +15.98%

Non-Traditional

Non-Traditional volume reached $47.0B. Leverage & Inverse products saw high turnover as traders bet on further downside or hedged current positions. Commodity-linked leverage (BOIL) surged over 37% during the session.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Non-Traditional: Synthetic Income – Crypto 247% $113.0M -7.10%
Non-Traditional: Synthetic Income – Commodity 234% $98.7M +2.86%
Non-Traditional: Leverage | Inverse – Fixed Income 232% $558.2M +0.24%
Non-Traditional: Synthetic Income – Equity 196% $3.1B -1.25%
Non-Traditional: Leverage | Inverse – Commodity 162% $3.7B -0.15%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
SLVO UBS AG ETRACS Silver Shares Covered Call ETNs 502% $26.2M +1.22%
TBT ProShares UltraShort 20+ Year Treasury 373% $36.5M +2.55%
BOIL ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Natural Gas 314% $746.1M +37.21%
GPIX Goldman Sachs S&P 500 Premium Income ETF 294% $102.8M -1.73%
SPYI NEOS S&P 500 High Income ETF 279% $369.5M -1.53%
MUU Direxion Daily MU Bull 2X Shares 272% $382.9M +1.71%
BTCI NEOS Bitcoin High Income ETF 268% $71.4M -4.58%
QQQI NEOS Nasdaq 100 High Income ETF 259% $552.3M -1.71%
AMZY YieldMax AMZN Option Income Strategy ETF 254% $15.1M -2.97%
SSO ProShares Ultra S&P 500 242% $429.3M -3.94%

Multi-Asset

Multi-Asset products saw elevated activity (180% of ADV) as investors rotated toward more conservative allocations. The Target Date category was especially active with over 250% relative turnover, reflecting strategic rebalancing.

High-Volume Categories (>125% Activity)

Category Activity $ Volume 1-Day Return
Asset Allocation: Target Risk – Target Date 254% $13.4M -1.40%
Asset Allocation: Specialty – Alternative Asset Sleeve 245% $79.3M -0.96%
Asset Allocation: Target Risk – Conservative 207% $18.3M -0.56%
Asset Allocation: Target Risk – Aggressive 197% $20.2M -1.57%
Asset Allocation: Target Risk – Global Macro 189% $38.1M -0.68%

High-Activity Ticker Outliers

Ticker Name Activity $ Volume 1D Return
RAAX VanEck Real Assets ETF 284% $9.7M +0.75%
AOK iShares Core 30/70 Conservative Allocation ETF 213% $16.9M -0.71%
AOR iShares Core 60/40 Balanced Allocation ETF 203% $54.2M -1.23%
AOA iShares Core 80/20 Aggressive Allocation ETF 199% $20.2M -1.43%
GDE WisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Equity Strategy Fund 191% $14.8M +1.22%
CGBL Capital Group Core Balanced ETF 161% $55.3M -1.14%

Disclaimer: This AI-assisted commentary is for informational purposes only. The “High-Volume Categories” table includes categories with over $100M in volume and activity at least 125% of their 30-day average, limited to the top 5 by activity percentage. The “High-Activity Ticker Outliers” table shows the top 10 ETFs from each asset class, sorted by the highest trading activity versus their 30-day average. All reported ETFs have AUM over $250M and an ADV greater than $2.5M.

Disclosures: This material is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. All investments, including ETFs, involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Investors should consider their investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing.

This analysis was developed by the team at ETF Action. We leverage advanced AI tools to assist in the drafting and refinement of our content, based on our expert prompts, direction, and final review.