In 1993 there was one ETF. There are now more than 12,000. They hold $11 trillion. And most of that money arrived in the last decade.
Walk onto any trading floor today and the most-traded ticker isn't a company. It's a basket. SPY — an ETF that holds the entire S&P 500 — changes hands more than any single stock on the planet. Most days it isn't close.
— Educational, not financial advice.