ETFs fuel managed account growth

Assets in managed accounts grew by 20.1% last year, hitting $1.49 trillion, according to the Money Management Institute. Growth was led by the exchange traded fund advisory channel, with assets surging to $10.1 billion in 2007, up from $6.8 billion in 2006, MMI said. This channel was also the fastest growing managed account segment, as customer demand skyrocketed. Some 291 ETFs were launched last year, grabbing $146 billion in net flows, up 126% from 2006. Mutual fund advisory assets hit $452.7 billion at the end of the year, up 25.6% from 2006, while separately-managed accounts leapt to $763.7 billion, reflecting a year over year gain of 12.7%. However, after the Standard and Poor’s 500 index dipped by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, mutual funds and managed accounts had some small quarterly asset declines of 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively. Variable product asset growth fell behind mutual funds and ETFs. With net sales hitting $27 billion and matching 2006’s net sales figures.