Key Takeaways
- • Mutual fund net sales doubled to $40.5 billion in 2025 from $15 billion in 2024, driven by investor migration from GICs and deposit products toward equity and fixed-income market participation.
- • Mutual fund assets reached a record $2.5 trillion in 2025, up 12.7% from $2.3 trillion in 2024, reflecting both strong net inflows and positive market performance.
- • ETF net sales hit a record $125.8 billion in 2025, with 49 investment fund companies now offering ETFs in Canada (a net increase of four companies).
- • Bond mutual funds generated $29.3 billion in net inflows, becoming the primary sales driver as declining interest rates and improved fixed-income conditions attracted capital away from traditional GICs.
- • The S&P/TSX Composite Index delivered a 28.2% return in 2025, combined with falling interest rates, creating conditions that shifted investor preference toward mutual funds and ETFs offering greater market exposure.
Summary
Canada's investment fund industry achieved record-breaking performance in 2025, according to the Securities and Investment Management Association (SIMA) 2025 Annual Statistics Report released in January 2026. The data reveals a significant acceleration in both mutual fund and ETF activity, with mutual fund net sales more than doubling year-over-year and ETF sales reaching unprecedented levels.
Mutual funds attracted $40.5 billion in net sales during 2025, more than double the $15 billion recorded in 2024. This surge was accompanied by mutual fund assets reaching $2.5 trillion, representing a 12.7% increase from the prior year's $2.3 trillion. Simultaneously, ETF net sales reached a record $125.8 billion, with the number of investment fund companies offering ETFs expanding to 49, up four net companies from the previous year. SIMA's Vice-President of Research and Statistics Ian Bragg attributed the strong results to "strong market returns and declining interest rates" that prompted "an investor shift from deposit products, such as GICs, toward mutual funds and ETFs in order to participate more fully in market returns."
The composition of fund inflows reveals distinct market dynamics. Bond mutual funds emerged as the key growth driver, posting $29.3 billion in net sales, benefiting from declining interest rates and improved fixed-income market conditions. Specialty mutual funds, including alternative fund strategies, commodity funds, and real property funds, generated $11.9 billion in net inflows. The backdrop for this performance was substantial: the S&P/TSX Composite Index delivered a 28.2% return in 2025, significantly improving market returns across equity portfolios while simultaneously eroding the relative attractiveness of fixed-term deposit products.
The report, which was expanded this year to include key indicators of Canada's public equity and debt markets, is based on direct reporting from member firms. The data demonstrates a structural shift in Canadian investor behavior, with market participants redeploying capital from low-yielding deposit products toward professionally managed investment vehicles offering exposure to equity and fixed-income markets during a period of favorable returns and declining rate environments.
Mutual funds attracted $40.5 billion in net sales during 2025, more than double the $15 billion recorded in 2024. This surge was accompanied by mutual fund assets reaching $2.5 trillion, representing a 12.7% increase from the prior year's $2.3 trillion. Simultaneously, ETF net sales reached a record $125.8 billion, with the number of investment fund companies offering ETFs expanding to 49, up four net companies from the previous year. SIMA's Vice-President of Research and Statistics Ian Bragg attributed the strong results to "strong market returns and declining interest rates" that prompted "an investor shift from deposit products, such as GICs, toward mutual funds and ETFs in order to participate more fully in market returns."
The composition of fund inflows reveals distinct market dynamics. Bond mutual funds emerged as the key growth driver, posting $29.3 billion in net sales, benefiting from declining interest rates and improved fixed-income market conditions. Specialty mutual funds, including alternative fund strategies, commodity funds, and real property funds, generated $11.9 billion in net inflows. The backdrop for this performance was substantial: the S&P/TSX Composite Index delivered a 28.2% return in 2025, significantly improving market returns across equity portfolios while simultaneously eroding the relative attractiveness of fixed-term deposit products.
The report, which was expanded this year to include key indicators of Canada's public equity and debt markets, is based on direct reporting from member firms. The data demonstrates a structural shift in Canadian investor behavior, with market participants redeploying capital from low-yielding deposit products toward professionally managed investment vehicles offering exposure to equity and fixed-income markets during a period of favorable returns and declining rate environments.
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