Bond ETF total scale tops 1 trillion yuan for first time, up over 170 billion yuan this year

As of September 23, the total scale of 53 bond ETFs across the market reached 1,002.231 trillion yuan, breaking through the trillion-yuan mark for the first time. This represents an increase of 173.207 billion yuan, or 20.9%, from 829.024 billion yuan at the beginning of the year.

Product Breakdown: 37 Bond ETFs Exceed 10 Billion Yuan

Among the 53 bond ETFs, 37 have a scale exceeding 10 billion yuan. The largest is the Haitong Short-Term Financing ETF, with a scale of 84.036 billion yuan.

The top performers include:

• Haitong Short-Term Financing ETF: 84.036 billion yuan (largest bond ETF)
• Bosera Convertible Bond ETF: 61.54 billion yuan
• Haitong Urban Investment Bond ETF: 55.529 billion yuan
• Fullgoal Policy Bank Bond ETF: Over 40 billion yuan
• Ping An Corporate Bond ETF: Over 40 billion yuan
• Harvest Sci-Tech Innovation Bond ETF: Over 40 billion yuan

Category Overview

Bond ETFs currently cover multiple sub-categories, including:

• Sci-Tech Innovation Bonds (科创债)
• Short-Term Financing (短融)
• Urban Investment Bonds (城投债)
• Convertible Bonds (可转债)
• Policy Bank Financial Bonds (政策性金融债)
• Corporate/Credit Bonds (公司/信用债)
• Long-Term Treasury Bonds (长端国债)
• Local Government Bonds (地方债)

Sci-Tech Innovation Bond ETFs represent the largest category, with 24 products totaling 354.063 billion yuan. Among them, the Harvest Sci-Tech Innovation Bond ETF leads at 41.724 billion yuan, followed by those from Yinhua, Fullgoal, and China Asset Management, each exceeding 20 billion yuan.

Fund Company Rankings

A total of 28 fund companies have launched bond ETFs. Only two have reached the 100-billion-yuan level:

| Fund Company | Number of Bond ETFs | Total Scale (billion yuan) | |---|---|---| | Haitong Fund | 6 | 184.826 | | Bosera Fund | 5 | 108.069 |

Haitong's products cover short-term financing, urban investment bonds, market-making corporate bonds, local government bonds, and convertible bonds.

Other notable players:

• Fullgoal Fund, China Asset Management, and E Fund: Each exceed 50 billion yuan
• Ping An Fund, China Southern Fund, Guotai Fund, and Harvest Fund: Each exceed 40 billion yuan

Historical Growth Trajectory

• March 2013: First bond ETF launched (Guotai SSE 5-Year Treasury Bond ETF)
• May 2024: Total bond ETF scale surpasses 100 billion yuan for the first time
• February 2025: Breaks 200 billion yuan
• July 2025: Surpasses 500 billion yuan
• End of 2025: Reaches 829 billion yuan
• September 23, 2026: Exceeds 1 trillion yuan

Industry Insights

Industry insiders attribute the rapid growth of bond ETFs to two main factors: favorable policy-driven outcomes and strong market demand for fixed-income instruments over the past two years. Institutional investors hold over 90% of most bond ETFs, reflecting a growing need for low-volatility, high-liquidity tools amid the net-value transformation of wealth management products.

Haitong Fund's Perspective

Haitong Fund identifies several drivers behind the growth:

1. Capital allocation demand: As passive investing gains traction, bond ETFs have seen increased attention and recognition, with allocators gradually raising their positions.
2. Policy and product supply: Regulators and exchanges have accelerated product innovation, with benchmark market-making bond ETFs and sci-tech innovation bond ETFs reaching broader investor groups. Bond ETFs have also been included in repo collateral pools, expanding their utility.
3. Market environment and liquidity improvements: Low interest rates combined with moderate volatility have created favorable conditions. Increased participation by market makers and proprietary desks has significantly improved liquidity, attracting further capital inflows in a virtuous cycle.

China Asset Management's View

China AMC highlights four key advantages of bond ETFs:

• High liquidity: T+0 trading for both secondary market transactions and subscriptions/redemptions; funds from sales are available the same day.
• Low entry barriers: Sampling replication methods allow investors to access diversified bond portfolios without the high minimum investment required for individual bonds.
• Low transaction costs: Most bond ETFs are exempt from stamp duty and transfer fees, and major brokerages waive trading commissions.
• Collateral financing: Some bond ETFs can be used for high-ratio pledged financing, expanding on-exchange funding channels.

Additionally, bond ETFs provide relatively stable cash flows and have low correlation with equity assets, making them a natural "stabilizer" for portfolio volatility.

Outlook

Looking ahead, Haitong Fund believes China's bond ETF market still has significant room for growth relative to the total bond market size. Key areas for development include:

• Product supply vs. demand gap: More differentiated products across different maturities, credit ratings, and industry themes are needed.
• Investor base expansion: Currently dominated by institutional investors, there is potential to increase retail participation.
• Institutional improvements: Further optimization of collateral mechanisms and expansion of underlying indices remain possible.

However, some industry participants caution that bond ETFs are still in early development. Continued innovation in product types and coverage, as well as further refinement of trading mechanisms, will be necessary to enhance market activity and pricing efficiency.