The number of Belgians investing in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has surged dramatically this year, reports L’Echo on Thursday after surveying major brokers.
ETFs, also known as passive funds or trackers, allow people to invest in a diversified portfolio of stocks or bonds. For example, ETFs can be based on global stock indexes like the MSCI World or FTSE All-World, which include more than 1,000 stocks worldwide.
On Belfius’s investment app, Re=Bel, the number of ETF investors has increased by 30% since the start of the year. At Saxo Bank, ETF investments have risen by a significant 165% compared to 2023, partly due to a reduction in ETF order fees in April, according to L’Echo.
Belgian online bank MeDirect has seen its number of ETF investors double over the last three years, while KBC Bolero reports ETF investments have grown by about 38% since January.
"ETFs are now the second most traded financial instrument at Bolero, after stocks," says KBC.
Keytrade also notes a 41% increase in ETF purchases since January.
Despite this strong growth, ETFs still represent a marginal share of Belgians’ financial assets. According to Beama, the federation of funds, Belgians had invested nearly €4 billion in ETFs by the end of June 2024, representing 1.3% of the €292 billion invested in funds in Belgium.
