ETF Launch Trends methodology

Analysis periods

Since 1 January 2025. This broader cohort measures the structural product-development trend across the eligible UCITS ETF universe.

Since 1 January 2026. This recent cohort measures current-year launch activity and acceleration. Pre-2025 launches provide context where needed to distinguish genuinely emerging themes, established themes and isolated launches.

Product, not share class

The primary unit is the underlying ETF product. Currency, accumulation and distribution, hedged and unhedged share classes, and exchange listings belonging to that product are consolidated. Share-class totals may be retained as secondary diagnostics but do not increase product launch counts.

Launch-date evidence

The analysis uses the canonical launch or inception date held in Grovcap’s ETF dataset. Records without a sufficiently reliable date are excluded from date-cohort counts, and the public page discloses the resulting universe coverage when it is incomplete.

Investment-theme classification

Investment themes are identified from stated mandates, product names and benchmark evidence using a fixed, auditable taxonomy. They remain separate from product structures such as active management, income, covered-call or currency-hedged products, and from asset-class exposure, which is reported independently.

Breadth, diversity and acceleration

Provider breadth measures independent issuers participating in a signal. Benchmark diversity helps prevent multiple products tracking the same benchmark from appearing broader than they are. Acceleration compares recent launches with the broader cohort, using pre-2025 context where appropriate.

Public statuses

Product-structure trends use the separate labels Accelerating, Growing, Stable, Early signal and Declining.

Independence

Signals are produced deterministically from Grovcap’s published rules applied to observed launches. Providers cannot pay to appear in a theme, and commercial relationships do not influence classification or ordering.

Data limitations

Launch dates, benchmark descriptions, mandates and fund-size fields can be missing or updated after publication. Provider reporting practices differ. The analysis describes observed launches in the eligible Grovcap universe; it does not measure every European product announcement, forecast demand, assess performance or recommend an ETF.

Versioning

Version 1.1. Analysis is re-run from the Grovcap Operations Centre; the public page shows the completion date of the most recent completed run.