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Launched · SEC filings

VanEck Africa Index ETF

AFKNYSE ArcaVanEckD

$25.45+0.15 (+0.61%)

As of Nov 2, 2026, 3:43 PM ET

D39/ 100

Rank 17 of 22 in Emerging Markets Stocks

D39/100Rank 17 of 22inEmerging Markets Stocks
Intraday session: up, 76 prints from 25.30 to 25.45. Range 25.37 to 25.86. Use the arrow keys to read each point.25.6025.7025.8010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.76%
Fund size
$92M
1Y total return
+6.8%
Yield · Last 12 months
1.07%
Holdings
79
Avg volume · 30D
61.3K sh
52W range
low $23.00high $30.85
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net AFK Grade

D

Score 39 out of 100

Category
Emerging Markets Stocks⁠
Rank
17 of 22
Six-pillar profile for AFK. Scores out of 100: Cost 12, Risk 34, Mission 62, Tradability 55, Holdings 38, Durability 63. Strongest: Durability (63). Weakest: Cost (12). Leans toward Durability and Mission.

Score 39 of 100 falls in the D band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    F12 out of 100
    Rank 19 of 22

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    B62 out of 100
    Rank 14 of 17

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    D34 out of 100
    Rank 20 of 22

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    B55 out of 100
    Rank 11 of 22

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    D38 out of 100
    Rank 13 of 19

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    B63 out of 100
    Rank 8 of 22

Our read on AFK

ETF.net Research

In short

DAfrica barely registers inside a standard emerging-markets fund. AFK makes it the whole trip: a 2008-vintage index fund holding roughly 80 African companies and tracking the MVIS GDP Africa Index.

Stated mandate

The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® GDP Africa Index.

Why people hold it

  • One ticker, one continent: roughly 80 companies tracking the MVIS GDP Africa Index rather than a single-country wager.
  • Live since 2008, so it has traded through commodity booms, currency shocks and multiple global selloffs. Rare longevity for a market this hard to reach.
  • Moderately traded for a frontier-flavored corner of the market, so building or unwinding a position is not an expedition.

Worth knowing

  • 0.76% a year sits well above the median for its emerging-markets peer group, and broad EM index peers like VEXC and BKEM charge a small fraction of that.
  • A concentrated regional slice: roughly 80 stocks exposed to currency moves, commodity prices and single-country politics, a narrower base than a diversified EM fund.
  • Distributions land annually or semiannually, not quarterly, so any cash arrives in lumps.

AFK Holdings

Holdings pillarD38 out of 100Rank 13 of 19 in Emerging Markets Stocks
Asset class
Stocks
Holdings
79
Top-10 weight
34%
Largest holding
Attijariwafa Bank4.6%

Sectors

  • Materials32.4%
  • Financials32.0%
  • Communication13.6%
  • Energy10.4%
  • Consumer Discretionary6.3%
  • Industrials2.5%
  • Consumer Staples1.8%
  • Health Care0.6%
  • Real Estate0.3%
  • Utilities0.2%

Geography

  • South Africa55.10%
  • Canada19.59%
  • United Kingdom12.65%
  • United States7.06%
  • Australia4.23%
  • India1.13%
  • Norway0.24%

Developed 39% · Emerging 61% of the foreign sleeve

The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 6.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1No dataAttijariwafa Bank4.58%63,856$4.31M1
2AUAnglogold Ashanti Plc3.87%42,785$3.64M124
3No dataAradel Holdings Plc3.56%3,126,673$3.35M1
4FSR.JOFirstrand Ltd3.53%595,413$3.32M93
5SEPL.LSeplat Energy Plc3.31%274,363$3.11M1
6NPN.JONaspers Ltd3.28%74,804$3.09M89
7EDV.LEndeavour Mining Plc3.26%57,966$3.07M102
8GFIGold Fields Ltd3.12%83,692$2.94M41
9CPI.JOCapitec Limited2.94%9,829$2.76M90
10No dataMtn Nigeria Communications Plc2.80%4,294,137$2.63M1
11SBK.JOStandard Bank Group Ltd2.71%137,312$2.55M88
12IVN.TOIvanhoe Mines Ltd2.70%377,075$2.54M67
13No dataSafaricom Plc2.67%9,831,457$2.51M2
14No dataGuaranty Trust Holding Co Plc2.64%27,686,928$2.48M1
15AYAAya Gold & Silver Inc2.58%99,160$2.42M11

Showing 1–15 of 79 holdings

AFK Performance

Launched Jul 10, 2008

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

AFK$10,676
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. AFK $10,676. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$11,000$12,000$13,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for AFK. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodAFK
Year to date−5.4%
1 month−8.1%
3 months−3.2%
1 year+6.8%
3 yearsper year+25.4%
5 yearsper year+5.7%
10 yearsper year+5.0%

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for AFK
YearReturn barAFK
2026 YTD−5.4%
2025+74.7%

AFK in the news

AFK Dividends

Adds up every distribution paid per share over the last 12 months, divided by the last completed close. Distributions are counted by ex-date. Data through Oct 30, 2026.
1.07%Last 12 months
Payout per share
$0.27Last 12 months
Last payment
$0.27 per share
Paid on
Shares bought on or after this date do not qualify for this distribution.
Frequency
Irregular

Distribution history

2017–2026

One bar per payment. 8 payments from 2017 to 2026 YTD. Dec 18, 2017 $0.49; Dec 20, 2018 $0.34; Dec 23, 2019 $1.29; Dec 21, 2020 $0.80; Dec 20, 2021 $0.84; Dec 19, 2022 $0.58; Dec 18, 2023 $0.31; Dec 22, 2025 $0.27. Use the arrow keys to read each point.2017201820192020202120222023202420252026YTD
Ex-datePay dateAmount per share
Dec 22, 2025Dec 26, 2025$0.27
Dec 18, 2023Dec 22, 2023$0.31
Dec 19, 2022Dec 23, 2022$0.58
Dec 20, 2021Dec 27, 2021$0.84
Dec 21, 2020Dec 28, 2020$0.80
Dec 23, 2019Dec 30, 2019$1.29
Dec 20, 2018Dec 27, 2018$0.34
Dec 18, 2017Dec 22, 2017$0.49
Dec 19, 2016Dec 23, 2016$0.53
Dec 21, 2015Dec 28, 2015$0.39
Dec 22, 2014Dec 29, 2014$0.76
Dec 23, 2013Dec 30, 2013$0.83

See all 17 payments⁠

$10,000 in AFK 10 years ago paid $2,719 in dividends.⁠

AFK Risk

Risk pillarD34 out of 100Rank 20 of 22 in Emerging Markets Stocks
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
20.1%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
1.02
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−37.6%
Trough Oct 2023
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
1.12
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

AFK Cost

Compare AFK and VEXC

Overpaying vs VEXC, cheapest in Emerging Markets Stocks

$13,176

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • AFK 0.76%

    $14,656

  • VEXC 0.07% Cheapest

    $1,480

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • AFK 0.76%
  • VEXC 0.07%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$5K$10K$15K051015202530AFK $14,656VEXC $1,480

Year by year

YearAFKVEXCOverpaying
10$1,353$128$1,225
20$5,142$503$4,639
30$14,656$1,480$13,176

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