Canadians are returning to actively managed funds amid ongoing market volatility.
According to the Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) investors trying to beat the March
1 Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) contribution deadline put nearly $10 billion into
mutual funds in February.
That brought the total amount of mutual fund assets under managed in Canada to $2 trillion as
of March 1.
In all, Canadians put $111.5 billion into mutual funds in 2021. That’s nearly four times the $29
billion in mutual fund sales in 2020, which was in line with average annual sales going back to
2000.
Sales in passively managed exchange traded funds (ETFs) totaled $4 billion in February,
bringing Canadians’ total assets in ETFs to $317.7 billion as of March 1.
Regarding bond funds, which were the only major asset class to experience a net redemption in
February, assets declined by $155 million in that month, according to the IFIC.
Rock bottom yields caused by ultra low interest rates, plus annual fees, have caused many
bond funds to lose money over the past two years.
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