iShares surpasses $500bn in ETF assets

BlackRock’s ETF arm iShares has surpassed $500bn in global assets under management (AUM), hitting $509bn at the end of March.

This milestone comes as the ETF industry celebrates its 10th anniversary in Europe and the UK, following the launch of the first two LDRS funds on the Deutsche Boerse on 11 April 2000.

As the largest issuer of ETFs globally, iShares accounts for nearly half of the industry's total AUM, according to BlackRock's ETF Landscape 2010.

The issuer says the financial crisis has accentuated the attributes associated with ETFs, including transparency, liquidity and cost efficiency. ETFs serve as flexible building blocks, which investors can use to implement their investment strategies.

Rory Tobin, head of iShares International says: "Achieving this $500bn AUM milestone validates the acceptance of the iShares ETF offering."

He says feedback from clients confirms that they continue to prefer broad based beta building blocks that can be used as core holdings for asset allocation purposes.

He adds: "These are exciting times for ETFs in Europe and we look forward to working with investors and educating them as to the investment possibilities that can be realised through the usage of ETFs."

iShares has 434 ETFs globally, including 201 funds with $409bn AUM in the US and 172 funds with $100bn AUM in Europe.