Vanguard logoVanguardIssuer

Jeff Johnson on the rise of active fixed income ETFs

In an April 2026 podcast summary, Vanguard, citing Morningstar, says fixed income drew approximately $600 billion of flows in 2025, roughly 70% of it into ETFs.

Read the full paper at Vanguard ↗
Share
Bonds· Web page

What it says

Figures as stated by Vanguard, Apr 1, 2026
  • Vanguard sizes the U.S. ETF market at roughly $13 trillion in assets, citing Morningstar and ETFGI figures through November 30, 2025.Vanguard
  • Jeff Johnson, who leads U.S. fixed income product at Vanguard, says advisors increasingly use active bond ETFs to hold a management team's chosen bonds in one liquid fund.Vanguard
  • Vanguard says 42 of 48 of its actively managed bond funds beat their peer group averages over the 10 years to December 31, 2025.Vanguard
  • Vanguard says its lineup carries a weighted expense ratio averaging 10 basis points, compared with 46 basis points industry-wide, according to Morningstar.Vanguard
  • Vanguard says its bond and money market funds held $2.8 trillion as of December 31, 2025, run by more than 200 fixed income professionals.Vanguard

The ETFIQ take

ETFIQ data to Oct 20, 2026 · the 204 of 833 bond ETFs with a daily figure, Sep 21, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026

Vanguard reports Morningstar's count of approximately $600 billion of fixed income flows in 2025, roughly 70% of which went to ETFs. From Sep 21, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026, bond ETFs had a net flow of +$35.7bn, summed over the 204 of 833 bond ETFs ETFIQ covers that have a daily figure.

+$35.7bnnet flow into bond ETFs, Sep 21, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026, over the 204 of 833 with a daily figureOct 20, 2026 · ETFIQ →+$177.3bnnet flow into bond ETFs, Jan 2, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026, over the 184 of 833 with a daily figureOct 20, 2026 · ETFIQ →
Paper: Fixed income fund flows, calendar year 2025. ETFIQ: the 204 of 833 bond ETFs with a daily figure, Sep 21, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026. Net flow is the change in shares outstanding times the day’s NAV, summed over the days in the window, for the funds with a daily figure. The two sets and windows differ; the figures are stated, not reconciled.MethodData

Related ETFs

The largest bond ETFs ETFIQ covers, by net assets
BNDVanguard Total Bond Market ETF−1.9%AGGiShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF−2.0%SGOViShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF+3.7%BNDXVanguard Total International Bond ETF−1.2%VCITVanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF−2.3%MUBiShares National Muni Bond ETF−1.7%

Figure: total return, 1 year, to Oct 21, 2026, from each fund’s page. All 830 bond ETFs →

Related papers

Same topic, other sources
Investment Company InstituteIndustry body
Release: Estimated ETF Net IssuanceOct 20, 2026 · ETFIQ take
J.P. Morgan Asset ManagementIssuer
Guide to ETFsOct 15, 2026 · ETFIQ take
ftFirst TrustIssuer
ETF Data WatchOct 7, 2026 · ETFIQ take
All 12 papers on bonds →

Questions people ask

What does the Vanguard paper conclude?

In an April 2026 podcast summary, Vanguard, citing Morningstar, says fixed income drew approximately $600 billion of flows in 2025, roughly 70% of it into ETFs. The paper’s own words are at the link above.

What does ETFIQ’s data show on the same question?

From Sep 21, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026, bond ETFs had a net flow of +$35.7bn, summed over the 204 of 833 bond ETFs ETFIQ covers that have a daily figure. ETFIQ states both figures and does not reconcile them.

What does a bond ETF hold?

A basket of bonds, such as Treasuries or corporate bonds, with a duration and credit mix set by its index or manager. More on this →

Where can I read “Jeff Johnson on the rise of active fixed income ETFs”?

On Vanguard’s own site. ETFIQ summarizes the paper and does not host it. Vanguard’s page ↗
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, Jeff Johnson on the rise of active fixed income ETFs (Vanguard), summary and ETFIQ take, as of Oct 21, 2026. https://etfiq.com/research/library/vanguard-jeff-johnson-on-the-rise-of-active-fixed-income-etfs/

Open data →

Summary by ETFIQ. ETFIQ is not affiliated with Vanguard; logos identify the source.