GLOBAL: Islamic ETFs recorded divergent performances across regions in Q1 2025, with Europe maintaining its lead in AuM, and Africa posting the highest growth rate – based on data tracked by the IFN Investor Funds Database.
Europe remained the largest market for Islamic ETFs, ending the quarter with US$4.13 billion in AuM – up 7.61% quarter-on-quarter. Turkiye led regional performance, rising 11.63% from US$1.95 billion to US$2.18 billion, followed by the Republic of Ireland, which saw a 3.01% increase in AuM from US$1.87 billion to US$1.92 billion.
Africa, while the smallest in size by AuM, experienced the strongest growth rate globally. Its AuM almost doubled – rising from US$3.35 million to US$6.5 million – primarily supported by inflows into South African ETF Funds.
Meanwhile, the Americas witnessed an AuM percentage decline – falling 19.98% from US$2.43 billion to US$1.92 billion. The downturn was largely attributed to US-based ETFs, which experienced a 26.65% drop – likely influenced by the NASDAQ underperformance during the quarter.
The Middle East, which held the second largest AuM at US$1.64 billion, registered a 5.91% increase from US$1.54 billion. Saudi Arabia led the region with a steady 7.08% AuM growth, driven by ongoing investor confidence in the government’s 2030 non-oil sector diversification strategies. The Asia Pacific saw varied performance. Pakistan posted the strongest gain, with AuM rising 21.67% from US$1.51 million to US$1.93 million, while Malaysia recorded steady growth of 11.88%. However, ETF markets in Indonesia and India declined significantly, with combined losses of 28.61% and 65.3% respectively across five ETF funds.
