Index funds originated in the United States and have primarily developed there. The world's first index fund appeared in the U.S. in 1971, introduced by Wells Fargo for institutional investors. At the time, it faced far more opposition than support. By the late 1970s, some pension funds, including AT&T, began to partially change their views on index investing. After entering the 1980s, as the U.S. stock market flourished, index funds gradually started attracting the attention of some investors. It was not until the 1990s that index funds truly experienced significant growth.

The period from 1994 to 1996 marked three successful years for index funds. In 1994, the S&P 500 Index grew by 1.3%, outperforming 78% of equity funds in the market. In 1995, the S&P 500 achieved a 37% growth rate, surpassing 85% of equity funds. In 1996, the S&P 500 grew by 23%, again outperforming 75% of equity funds. Over these three years combined, 91% of equity funds underperformed the S&P 500 Index. As a result, the concept of index funds began to establish a positive image among investors, and the advantages of index investing became apparent.

According to statistics, the assets of index funds held by U.S. institutional investors grew from $10 billion in 1980 to $1 trillion by the end of 1996. Individual investors' holdings of index funds also increased from $4 billion in 1990 to $58 billion.

After more than 20 years of rapid development, index funds in the U.S. have grown into a large and diverse segment of the fund industry. Today, the most successful index fund managers in the U.S. are Vanguard and Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA). Vanguard manages over $100 billion in index funds, and its Vanguard S&P 500 Index Fund ranked second globally in 1997 with $69 billion in assets. Currently, major U.S. fund management companies, including Fidelity, Merrill Lynch, and Dreyfus, all manage one or more index funds.