Deutsche Börse | Best European Exchange for Trading ETFs | Best European Exchange for Listing Cryptocurrency ETPs
Q&A with Stephan Kraus, Head of Deutsche Börse’s ETF & ETP Segment
Why do you think you won this award?
Deutsche Börse is honoured to have been recognised as the best European exchange for trading ETFs as well as for listing cryptocurrency ETPs, and we would like to sincerely thank everyone who voted for us. Our ETF & ETP segment performed extremely well in 2022 despite a challenging market environment. We saw a strong increase in ETF trading volumes and, with 480 new ETF and ETP listings, the highest listing activity since the segment was launched more than 20 years ago. In addition, we have expanded our multi-currency trading offering by now covering the full range of currencies supported by our clearinghouse, and we have further increased the scope of accepted crypto assets, thus providing ETF and ETP issuers with more choice when listing products on Xetra.
What is the size and scale of your business at the moment?
Xetra is Europe’s leading ETF trading venue by order book turnover and number of products listed. In 2022, trading of ETFs on Xetra reached a new record level of EUR233 billion, an increase of 14 per cent against the previous year. The number of ETFs listed also continues to grow and currently stands at 2,044, making Deutsche Börse the first European exchange to offer more than 2,000 ETFs on a single platform. The ETF range on Xetra is complemented by more than 400 ETCs and ETNs, which provide short, leveraged and delta 1 exposure to a broad range of asset classes. For example, by partnering with our clearinghouse Eurex Clearing, we were the world’s first exchange to list a centrally cleared crypto spot product in 2020. Since then, we have been continuously working to further expand product choice in this space. The current range features more than 80 products and is the most actively traded crypto ETP offering among European exchanges.
What trends have you seen over the past year?
As in previous years, sustainable ETFs were one of the key growth drivers in 2022. With 198 new products, ESG ETFs accounted for the largest share of new admissions in our ETF segment, bringing the total number of ESG ETFs on Xetra to 733 at year-end. Although the definition of sustainable investment will likely require some further regulatory clarification to ensure a consistent classification approach across the industry, it is evident that there is a strong demand for cost-effective investment products focused on sustainability from both retail and institutional investors. This demand is also reflected in the growing relevance of ESG ETFs in terms of order book turnover on Xetra. While ESG ETFs accounted for less than one per cent of the trading volume of all ETFs listed on Xetra five years ago, their share today is around 20 per cent.
Where do you see the ETF industry going in terms of products over the coming year?
In recent years, we have seen strong adoption of ETFs among retail investors, and we expect this trend to continue. One product type that is particularly popular with retail investors, alongside broad global equity indices, is thematic ETFs, as they allow investors to conveniently participate in new trends or specific subsets of the broader investment universe. To meet this growing demand, issuers listed a record number of thematic ETFs on Xetra last year and have continued this activity in 2023. Hence, we believe this is an area where we will see more competition and choice in the coming year.
