Environmental, social and governance exchange-traded funds and products grew by 24 funds and $65 billion during the first five months of 2020. As of May 31, ETFGI reported 341 individual products with a combined net asset value of $341 billion. Total assets were up from $276 billion at the end of 2019 despite the largest downturn since the global financial crisis.
BlackRock's iShares ESG MSCI USA ETF led the fund group in net new money this year, adding $5.7 billion, or most of the fund's total $7.3 billion in assets. Similarly, iShares ESG MECI EM ETF also experienced rapid growth this year adding $2.6 billion new money, bringing its May 31 assets to $3.2 billion.
Through May 31, the MSCI USA ESG Leaders index was down 3.4% year-to-date, almost a full percentage point ahead of its counterpart MSCI USA index.
