ICI Fact Book Names 2025 Market Milestones

The Investment Company Institute on April 27 published the 2026 edition of its Investment Company Fact Book, a compendium of research and analysis about the asset management industry. The 146-page fact book cited research, analysis and statistical releases published in 2025.

“ICI’s latest edition of Fact Book … underscores the industry’s continued innovation, including declining expense ratios and expanded access to retirement plans, helping more investors build long-term financial security,” said ICI Chief Economist Shelly Antoniewicz, in a statement.

Among the book’s key findings were that U.S. households have “accumulated a significant retirement nest egg.” Assets earmarked for retirement totaled $49.1 trillion and represented more than 30% of U.S. households’ total financial assets in 2025. Additionally, ICI reported that 74% of U.S. households had some kind of tax-advantaged retirement savings.

The largest components of retirement assets last year were individual retirement accounts (including rollovers) and employer-sponsored defined contribution plans, which totaled $33.4 trillion at the end of 2025. The record $49.1 trillion for retirement as of December 31, 2025 also represented an 11% gain over the total at the end of 2024.

In addition, ICI noted that sustained inflows into bond and money market funds, along with strong stock market performance, contributed to a 19% increase in total assets in 2025. Regulated funds managed $88 trillion in total net assets worldwide. Net inflows into bond funds were $1.3 trillion.

Meanwhile, net issuance of exchange-traded fund shares hit a record $1.5 trillion in 2025, up from $1.1 trillion in 2024. Total net assets of ETFs surpassed $13 trillion.

Mutual funds, as well as other regulated funds, have become well-established vehicles for middle-class families, ICI concluded.