The state of the buffer desk

Across the buffer ETF desk tracked by ETFIQ, 245 funds from 3 issuers show a wide spread of positions as their outcome periods run their course. As of Sep 4, 2026, 87 funds, or 36% of the total, sit at their cap, meaning the index they track has risen far enough that those funds have no further upside left in the current period. Another 145 funds, or 59%, remain open, with room to move in either direction. The remaining 13 funds, or 5%, have seen their buffer absorbing losses, meaning the index has already fallen enough to reach the point where the fund's downside protection is in use.

Looking at the whole desk, the median fund could still gain 5.0% from its current price before hitting its cap, and could fall 6.3% before its buffer starts absorbing losses, according to the issuers' own published figures. These figures are stated in fund-price terms, net of fees, and describe where each fund sits relative to its own stated terms, not a forecast of what will happen next.

The three issuers show different patterns. Innovator, with 108 funds, has 39 at cap and 6 with buffers working, and its median fund could still gain 5.6% with 5.9% of downside room before the buffer begins. First Trust, with 81 funds, has 35 at cap and 3 with buffers working; its median fund has less remaining upside, at 4.4%, but more room before the buffer starts, at 7.6%. AllianzIM, the smallest of the three with 56 funds, has 13 at cap and 4 with buffers working, and its median fund shows 4.6% of remaining gain and 5.4% of room before the buffer begins.

The reset calendar over the next twelve months shows a clear pattern. Funds resetting soonest carry the least remaining cap, because their underlying index has had the most time to climb toward that cap before the period closes. The Sep 2026 group, with 42 funds, shows a median remaining gain of just 0.7%, alongside a median index move since the period started of +15.6%, the largest such move in the table. By contrast, funds resetting further out carry fresh caps with more room left. The Aug 2027 group, with 16 funds, shows a median remaining gain of 14.7%, against a median index move of just +0.4% since that period began. This progression, from tight caps near-term to wide caps out toward next year, reflects the point in each fund's cycle rather than a difference in the terms themselves; new caps are set at the start of each period and simply have not yet had time to be tested by index movement.

Readers can check the current band state, remaining cap, and downside-before-buffer figures for any individual fund on the live desk, updated as of the date shown.