Leading fund managers worldwide in August 2026, by assets under management
Fund managers run the pooled investment funds, mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, that hundreds of millions of people use to save and invest. As of August 2026, the largest of them, BlackRock, manages more than 14 trillion dollars. This report ranks the leading fund managers worldwide by assets under management. The scale of the leaders is hard to grasp. A single firm now runs trillions upon trillions. The sums defy easy comparison. They dwarf the assets of entire nations. The figures are almost beyond imagination. Each one of the leaders manages a fortune of truly historic size.
The same handful of giants that top the overall industry, covered in our largest asset managers worldwide report, also dominate the fund business. BlackRock leads, with its iShares ETF range and vast fund line-up examined in our number of BlackRock funds by region analysis.
Two giants out front: BlackRock leads all fund managers at over 14 trillion dollars, with Vanguard close behind near 12 trillion. Fidelity, UBS and a cluster of others follow, but none comes within 7 trillion dollars of the top.
What sets fund managers apart is their reliance on pooled, often low-cost products sold to the public. The shift toward cheap index funds and ETFs has reshaped the ranking, rewarding scale above all, a force also clear in our BlackRock statistics and facts overview.
A note on the data. The headline AUM figures are reported actuals from recent disclosures, but the ETF, mutual fund, flow and fee figures are drawn from industry sources and are approximate. Definitions differ between firms, so the order of closely ranked managers can shift depending on the measure used. The clear front-runners, though, are not in doubt.
Leading Fund Managers Worldwide by AUM
| Fund manager | AUM (USD tn) | Country |
|---|---|---|
| BlackRock | $14.0T | USA |
| Vanguard | $12.0T | USA |
| Fidelity | $7.0T | USA |
| UBS | $6.9T | Switzerland |
| State Street | $5.6T | USA |
| J.P. Morgan AM | $4.8T | USA |
| Goldman Sachs | $3.6T | USA |
| Amundi | $3.3T | France |
| Capital Group | $3.2T | USA |
| Allianz | $2.6T | Germany |
| Invesco | $1.9T | USA |
| BNY Investments | $1.9T | USA |
The table lists the leading fund managers worldwide by their latest assets under management, in trillion dollars. It shows BlackRock and Vanguard far ahead, followed by Fidelity, UBS and a cluster of firms managing several trillion dollars each. Sorting reveals the full order. Size alone tells much of the story. The order rarely springs any surprises.
Leading Fund Managers in the ETF Market
In the fast-growing world of exchange-traded funds, the ranking is even more concentrated. BlackRock, through its iShares brand, leads by a wide margin, with around 5.5 trillion dollars in ETF assets, roughly a third of the entire global ETF market. No rival comes anywhere close in ETFs. iShares stands in a class of its own. Its lead in ETFs is simply commanding. One brand holds a third of the market. The rest divide what little remains.
Vanguard is a clear second with about 3 trillion dollars in ETFs, followed by State Street, whose SPDR range launched the very first ETF in 1993. These three firms dominate the ETF market, a concentration even tighter than in the broader industry.
iShares far ahead: BlackRock iShares leads with around 5.5 trillion dollars in ETFs, roughly a third of the global market, ahead of Vanguard at about 3 trillion and State Street, which launched the very first ETF in 1993.
The ETF business is where the fiercest growth and price competition lie. Because ETFs compete mainly on cost, the largest, cheapest providers win the most money, a self-reinforcing edge that keeps the leading fund managers ahead of smaller rivals. The cost advantage compounds year after year.
Leading Mutual Fund Managers
In traditional mutual funds, the order looks a little different. Vanguard leads, with several trillion dollars in mutual fund assets, closely followed by Fidelity, two firms built largely on the American retirement market. Decades of savings flow through their funds. Retirement money anchors their lead. Pension savings flow steadily their way.
Capital Group, through its American Funds range, and BlackRock also rank among the largest mutual fund managers. The US mutual fund market alone holds more than 31 trillion dollars, a vast pool that underpins the leading fund managers, much as the markets in our biggest companies by value rankings underpin the giants.
Vanguard tops mutual funds: in traditional mutual funds Vanguard leads, closely followed by Fidelity, both built on the US retirement market. Capital Group and BlackRock follow in a market worth over 31 trillion dollars.
Mutual funds are slowly losing ground to ETFs, which are cheaper and more tax-efficient in many markets. Yet they remain enormous, especially inside workplace retirement plans, where they still dominate the menu of available choices. Old habits keep mutual funds in place.
Where Money Is Flowing Among Fund Managers
The flow of new money tells you which fund managers are winning. In its latest year, BlackRock attracted record net inflows of around 700 billion dollars, far more than any rival, cementing its lead. Money keeps pouring toward the leader. Each year widens the gap a little more. Catching the leader looks ever harder. The momentum compounds with every quarter.
Vanguard and Fidelity also drew large inflows, while some traditional active managers saw money flow out, as investors switched to cheaper index products. The split between winners and losers captures the active-to-index shift running through our BlackRock AUM by asset class analysis.
Winners and losers: BlackRock drew record net inflows of around 700 billion dollars, with Vanguard and Fidelity also gaining, while some active managers saw money flow out. The green and red split captures the active-to-index shift.
Net flows matter because they add fee-earning assets on top of market gains. A manager that keeps attracting money can grow even in a flat market, while one suffering outflows shrinks, which is why flows are watched so closely across the industry. Flows reveal the winners before the totals do.
Fund Managers: ETFs vs Mutual Funds
Across the whole fund industry, the balance between ETFs and mutual funds is steadily shifting. In the United States, mutual funds still hold the larger share, at roughly 70 percent of fund assets, but ETFs have grown to around 30 percent and keep gaining. The trend points firmly toward ETFs. The direction of travel is unmistakable.
A decade ago, ETFs were a much smaller slice; their rise has been one of the defining trends in finance. The leading fund managers that embraced ETFs early, above all BlackRock and Vanguard, have grown fastest, a pattern echoed across our big tech revenue statistics coverage.
Mutual funds still lead: mutual funds hold roughly 70 percent of US fund assets and ETFs about 30 percent, but the ETF share keeps climbing. A decade ago ETFs were a far smaller slice of the market.
The shift toward ETFs is far from over. As more investors and advisers move to low-cost, tradable funds, the ETF share is expected to keep rising, further rewarding the largest and cheapest fund managers at the expense of traditional rivals. The ETF wave shows no sign of cresting.
Growth of the Leading Fund Managers
The assets run by the leading fund managers have grown enormously over the past decade. Helped by long bull markets and steady inflows, the biggest firms have seen their assets multiply, far outpacing the wider economy. Few sectors have expanded so quickly. The growth has reshaped global finance. The fund giants now sit at its centre. They shape how the world saves and invests. Their decisions ripple across markets. Very few institutions anywhere carry such global weight.
Total assets across the largest managers reached record levels in recent years, recovering strongly from a sharp dip in 2022 when markets fell. The same relentless climb has lifted the giants, a surge detailed in our largest BlackRock multi-asset funds coverage.
Multiplying assets: the assets run by the leading fund managers have grown enormously over the past decade, recovering strongly from a sharp dip in 2022. The largest, most index-focused firms have grown fastest of all.
Growth has not been evenly shared. The very largest, most index-focused fund managers have grown fastest, while many smaller, active firms have struggled, deepening the gap between the leaders and the rest of the field.
How Fund Manager Fees Have Fallen
One of the most powerful trends in fund management is the long fall in fees. The average cost of owning a fund has dropped sharply, from well over 0.8 percent a year in 2010 to around 0.3 percent today, saving investors billions. Cheaper funds leave more in savers pockets.
This fee war has been driven by the giant index providers, who can charge rock-bottom prices thanks to their scale. Lower fees attract more money, which lowers fees further, a virtuous circle for the biggest fund managers but a squeeze on smaller ones, much like the dynamics in our Apple and Google comparison coverage.
The great fee fall: the average cost of owning a fund has dropped from well over 0.8 percent a year in 2010 to around 0.3 percent today, driven by the giant index providers. Lower fees draw more money, which lowers fees further.
Falling fees are a clear win for ordinary savers, who keep more of their returns. But they also raise the pressure on fund managers to grow ever larger, since thin margins on huge assets are the only way to make low-fee investing profitable. Only true giants can thrive on such margins. The squeeze pushes smaller firms aside. Consolidation marches steadily on.
Fund Managers: ETF Assets in 2016 vs 2026
Looking at ETF assets in 2016 against 2026 shows just how explosive the growth has been. The leading ETF providers have multiplied their assets several times over in a single decade. The change has been almost without precedent.
BlackRock iShares range has grown from around 1 trillion dollars in 2016 to roughly 5.5 trillion in 2026, while Vanguard ETFs have climbed from under 1 trillion to about 3 trillion. The pace of this expansion is as dramatic as anything in our Apple net income coverage.
Several times over: BlackRock iShares has grown from about 1 trillion dollars of ETFs in 2016 to roughly 5.5 trillion in 2026, and Vanguard from under 1 trillion to about 3. The ETF boom has reshaped the whole ranking.
This surge reflects a structural shift in how the world invests, away from expensive active funds and toward cheap, tradable ETFs. The managers that led this shift have been its biggest winners by far. They rode the ETF wave to the top. Early movers reaped the biggest rewards. Latecomers have struggled to catch up. The first-mover edge has proved decisive.
Leading Fund Managers by Home Country
By home country, the leading fund managers are overwhelmingly American. The United States is home to almost all of the very largest, including BlackRock, Vanguard, Fidelity, State Street and Capital Group. American firms simply dominate the field. No other nation comes remotely close. The United States owns the top tier. Its fund giants reach across the globe.
Europe contributes a smaller group, led by UBS of Switzerland and Amundi of France, while Asia-Pacific managers are smaller still. The American dominance reflects the depth of US markets and the early rise of index investing there, a lead also visible in our leading investment firms in the UK report.
An American industry: almost all the very largest fund managers, including BlackRock, Vanguard, Fidelity and State Street, are based in the United States. Europe is a distant second, and Asia-Pacific smaller still.
This concentration in the United States is unlikely to fade soon. The scale, low fees and global reach of the American fund giants make them very hard for managers in other regions to challenge at the very top of the rankings. Their lead looks secure for years to come.
Fund Managers: Size vs ETF Focus
Plotting each manager total size against how much of it sits in ETFs shows two kinds of leader. Some, like BlackRock and Vanguard, are huge in both; others are large overall but far less focused on ETFs. The split sorts the leaders into two camps. ETF strength increasingly marks the winners. The most ETF-heavy firms grow fastest. That is where the new money keeps heading.
The most ETF-focused managers have generally grown fastest, since that is where the money has flowed. The trade-off between traditional funds and ETFs is reshaping the ranking, a shift as sharp as anything in our BlackRock hub.
Scale meets ETFs: the bars show each manager total assets while the line shows the share held in ETFs. The most ETF-focused firms, led by BlackRock and Vanguard, have generally grown the fastest.
For investors, the message is that scale and ETF strength increasingly go together at the top. The leading fund managers of the future are likely to be those that combine vast size with a dominant position in low-cost, tradable funds. That combination defines the modern leader. Scale and ETFs now go hand in hand. Tomorrow leaders will likely have both.
Taken together, the rankings show a fund industry led by a few colossal names: BlackRock above 14 trillion dollars, Vanguard near 12, and Fidelity, UBS and others behind them. In ETFs the concentration is tighter still, with BlackRock and Vanguard far ahead.
Whether measured by total assets, by ETF strength or by the money flowing in, the leading fund managers are pulling further ahead. The combination of vast scale and rock-bottom fees has made the biggest fund managers almost impossible for smaller rivals to catch.
Frequently Asked Questions: Leading Fund Managers
BlackRock is the largest fund manager in the world in 2026, with more than 14 trillion US dollars in assets under management. It became the first firm in history to cross the 14 trillion dollar mark at the end of 2025. BlackRock leads not only in total assets but also in exchange-traded funds, where its iShares brand holds around 5.5 trillion dollars, roughly a third of the entire global ETF market. The American firm has held the top spot since 2009, when it acquired the iShares business. Its closest rival is Vanguard, which manages around 12 trillion dollars and dominates the low-cost mutual fund market. Together, these two firms tower over every other fund manager in the world.
The terms fund manager and asset manager are often used interchangeably, and the largest firms are leaders in both. Strictly, an asset manager is any firm that invests money on behalf of clients, which can include segregated institutional mandates, private accounts and pooled funds. A fund manager focuses specifically on running pooled investment funds, such as mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, that many investors buy into together. In practice, the giants like BlackRock, Vanguard and Fidelity are both: they run vast ranges of public funds while also managing money for large institutions. This report ranks them by total assets under management, the same broad measure used for asset managers, since the leading firms dominate both the fund business and the wider industry.
BlackRock leads the exchange-traded fund market by a wide margin, through its iShares brand. iShares holds around 5.5 trillion dollars in ETF assets, equivalent to roughly a third of the entire global ETF market. Vanguard is a clear second, with about 3 trillion dollars in ETFs, followed by State Street, whose SPDR range launched the first ETF, the SPDR S&P 500, back in 1993. These three firms dominate the ETF business far more tightly than the broader asset management industry. The ETF market is fiercely competitive on price, which favours the largest, cheapest providers, and this is exactly why the biggest fund managers keep extending their lead. ETFs have been the fastest-growing part of the fund industry for over a decade.
Vanguard leads the traditional mutual fund market, with several trillion dollars in mutual fund assets, closely followed by Fidelity. Both firms built their scale largely on the American retirement market, where mutual funds remain the dominant vehicle inside workplace pension plans. Capital Group, through its American Funds range, and BlackRock are also among the largest mutual fund managers. The US mutual fund market alone holds more than 31 trillion dollars, a vast pool of savings. However, mutual funds are slowly losing ground to ETFs, which are often cheaper and more tax-efficient. The shift is gradual, because mutual funds are deeply embedded in retirement plans, but over time more money is expected to move from mutual funds into exchange-traded funds.
Fund managers are ranked by their assets under management, or AUM, the total value of the investments they manage on behalf of clients. As of 2026, the leaders are BlackRock at over 14 trillion dollars, Vanguard at around 12 trillion, Fidelity at roughly 7 trillion, UBS at close to 7 trillion, State Street at around 5.6 trillion and JPMorgan at about 4.8 trillion. One complication is that firms measure their assets in slightly different ways: some report invested assets or assets under supervision, which can be broader than strict AUM. This mainly affects the order of firms ranked close together, rather than the clear leaders. Many rankings also break the figures down by product, such as ETFs or mutual funds, which can reorder the firms depending on which part of the fund business is being measured.
Fund fees have fallen dramatically over the past 15 years, with the average cost of owning a fund dropping from well over 0.8 percent a year in 2010 to around 0.3 percent today. The main driver is the rise of low-cost index funds and ETFs, led by giants such as BlackRock and Vanguard, which can charge rock-bottom prices thanks to their enormous scale. This has triggered a fee war: lower fees attract more money, which allows even lower fees, in a virtuous circle for the biggest providers. For ordinary savers, falling fees are a clear benefit, since they keep more of their investment returns. For fund managers, however, thin margins mean only the very largest firms can make low-fee investing genuinely profitable, which accelerates the concentration of assets at the top.
The money in fund management is flowing strongly toward the largest, lowest-cost providers, especially in index funds and ETFs. In its latest year, BlackRock attracted record net inflows of around 700 billion dollars, more than any rival, while Vanguard and Fidelity also drew large sums. At the same time, many traditional active managers have suffered outflows, as investors switch to cheaper index products. Net flows matter because they add fee-earning assets on top of any market gains, so a manager that keeps attracting money can grow even when markets are flat. The clear pattern is that money is moving from expensive active funds into cheap passive ones, and from smaller managers to the giants, reinforcing the dominance of the leading fund managers.
Yes, the leading fund managers are overwhelmingly American. Almost all of the very largest firms, including BlackRock, Vanguard, Fidelity, State Street and Capital Group, are based in the United States. This dominance reflects the unrivalled depth of US capital markets, the largest pool of retirement savings in the world, and the fact that the index fund and the ETF were both pioneered in America. European firms such as UBS of Switzerland and Amundi of France are significant but considerably smaller, and Asia-Pacific managers are smaller still. The scale, low fees and global reach of the American fund giants make them very difficult for managers in other regions to challenge, and the concentration of leading fund managers in the United States looks set to continue for the foreseeable future.
ETFs are steadily taking share from mutual funds, but they are not replacing them outright, at least not yet. In the United States, mutual funds still hold around 70 percent of fund assets, while ETFs have grown to roughly 30 percent. A decade ago, the ETF share was much smaller, so the shift has been rapid. ETFs are often cheaper than mutual funds and, in many markets, more tax-efficient, which makes them attractive to a growing number of investors and advisers. However, mutual funds remain deeply embedded in workplace retirement plans, where they still dominate the available choices, which slows the transition. Over time, most analysts expect ETFs to keep gaining ground, further rewarding the fund managers, led by BlackRock and Vanguard, that dominate the ETF market.
The fund industry has grown rapidly over the long term, driven by rising markets and the steady flow of savings into funds. The assets run by the largest managers have multiplied over the past decade, far outpacing the wider economy, although the industry suffered a sharp setback in 2022 when both stocks and bonds fell. The US fund market alone now exceeds 44 trillion dollars, combining more than 31 trillion in mutual funds and over 13 trillion in ETFs. Growth has been led by the giant, index-focused fund managers and by the relentless rise of ETFs. It has not been evenly shared, however: the largest, cheapest providers have grown fastest, while many smaller active managers have struggled, widening the gap between the leaders and the rest of the field.
Company disclosures and earnings releases, 2025-2026 (BlackRock, State Street, JPMorgan and others) - Source for firm AUM.
Investment Company Institute (ICI) and ETF industry data - Source for ETF, mutual fund and fee figures.
Investment Company Institute - Reference for US fund industry statistics.
