Mumbai: Net inflows into mutual funds’ equity schemes fell nearly 19 per cent to Rs 24,690 crore in October, marking the third straight month of decline, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi).
The drop followed inflows of Rs 30,421 crore in September and Rs 33,430 crore in August, reflecting investor profit-booking amid high equity valuations.
Amfi CEO V. N. Chalasani said the decline was not due to waning investor interest but rather higher redemptions as investors booked profits. Redemptions rose to Rs 38,920 crore in October from Rs 35,982 crore in September, while mobilisations slipped to Rs 63,611 crore from Rs 66,404 crore.
Despite the slowdown in inflows, assets under management (AUM) of equity schemes climbed to Rs 35.16 lakh crore at the end of October from Rs 33.68 lakh crore in September, driven by market gains.
Systematic investment plans (SIPs), a popular route for retail investors, continued to show resilience.
SIP inflows touched Rs 29,529 crore in October, marginally lower than September’s record Rs 29,631 crore. The total SIP AUM rose to Rs 16.25 lakh crore, accounting for over one-fifth of the industry’s total AUM.
Active SIP accounts increased to 9.45 crore from 9.25 crore a month earlier, with 60 lakh new accounts opened and 45 lakh closed during the month.
Chalasani said Amfi is addressing technical issues affecting the reporting of “micro SIPs” (small-ticket SIPs) and expects to begin publishing separate data from January.
Debt mutual funds witnessed renewed interest, with net inflows of Rs 1.59 lakh crore in October compared with outflows of Rs 1.01 lakh crore in September, typically seen at the start of new quarters. This helped lift the overall mutual fund industry AUM by over 5% to Rs 79.88 lakh crore.
Meanwhile, gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw inflows of Rs 7,743 crore in October—down slightly from Rs 8,363 crore in September—amid a global rally in gold prices. Their AUM crossed Rs 1.02 lakh crore. Silver ETFs attracted over Rs 3,000 crore, taking their AUM past Rs 42,000 crore.
October also saw the launch of 18 new schemes that raised Rs 6,062 crore, up sharply from Rs 1,959 crore across nine launches in September.
The newly introduced Specialised Investment Funds (SIFs), targeted at sophisticated investors with a minimum investment of Rs 10 lakh, attracted Rs 2,007 crore across four strategies.
The SIF category now has 10,200 folios and an overall AUM of Rs 2,010 crore.
Fund houses are also exploring new commodity ETFs, which Chalasani said may be rolled out within the next four months.