Canadian exchange-traded fund assets topped C$500 billion ($346 billion) for the first time in 2024, a year that broke records for new fund inflows and launches.

ETF assets under management stood at C$519 billion at the end of December, according to the National Bank of Canada, thanks to strong market returns and inflows of C$76 billion. The latter figure was 45% higher than the previous annual record set in 2021.

ETF providers enjoyed strong inflows across several fund types as markets rose. U.S. stock funds received nearly C$22 billion in new capital and ended the year with assets of about C$130 billion, according to the National Bank.

This makes it a larger category for the ETF industry than Canadian stock ETFs, which have 102 billion Canadian dollars.