iShares Europe has reported a record year of net inflows into its European Exchange Traded Funds (ETF), securing €17.7bn in net new ETF assets at the end of 2008.

AT the end of 2007, this figure stood at €5.8bn, and therefore iShares has seen a threefold increase in new money flowing into their ETFs.

Globally, the business has had a record year, with net inflows of $89bn in new ETF assets at the end of 2008, compared with $70bn in the previous year. These reflected investments by investors in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Japan, Asia Pacific and Latin America.

"The challenging market conditions of 2008 have raised some key issues in the minds of investors, specifically: transparency, counterparty risk, product structure and liquidity," commented Rory Tobin, CEO of iShares Europe. "We believe that we have seen a significant shift in investors' risk appetite in their evaluation of counterparty risk and their desire for liquidity. We have also seen a heightened desire for increased transparency in relation to the issues of cost, risk and return as they relate to investment alternatives. These themes play to the strengths of our iShares Exchange Traded Funds."

The most popular iShares in Europe in 2008, based on net inflows, was the iShares S&P 500, followed by the iShares FTSE 100, which offers exposure to European Single Country. Four of the top ten iShares in the table offer exposure to European or Pan European Equities, which iShares said reveals a significant interest in this area as investors become more cautious as to their approach to the market turmoil.

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