Mutual fund assets surge 35% to a new high in FY24

The mutual funds industry’s assets under management (AUM) spurted by nearly ₹14 lakh crore to a record ₹53.40 lakh crore as of March 2024 compared with ₹39.42 lakh crore as of March 2023, according to Association of Mutual Funds in India.

At over 35%, the percentage gain was the highest since fiscal 2021 when the industry had grown 41%.

The strong gain in industry assets was also replicated in the growth of investors in mutual funds, with the number of folios closing at a record high of 17.78 crore, converting into an investor base of around 4.46 crore.

Women comprised around 23% of the investors based on their share of the AUM and men around 77%, while individual investors comprised around 60% as against institutional investors around 40%.

Individual investor-oriented schemes lead the growth chart, according to AMFI. Individual investors dominated mutual fund categories such as equity, hybrid and solution-oriented schemes, and led the growth chart as households in the country increased their capital market participation through the mutual fund route. The three categories together accounted for nearly 58% of the industry assets and 80% of the folio count as of March 2024; share of assets of these categories has increased from 45% in March 2019, showcasing their dominance in the growth of industry assets.

Equity-oriented mutual fund categories grew 55% in fiscal 2024 to ₹23.50 lakh crore, led by strong inflows and MTM gains. The category saw net inflows of ₹1.84 lakh crore in the fiscal, up from ₹1.47 lakh crore in the previous fiscal.

The broad category also benefitted from sharp growth in the underlying equity markets, leading to MTM gains in industry assets. Equity markets represented by the Nifty 50 total return index and Nifty 500 TRI gained around 33% and 44%, respectively, during the fiscal.

The flexi cap category was the largest fund category with assets of over ₹3.50 lakh crore as of March 2024, followed by large-cap funds with ₹3.14 lakh crore assets. In terms of percentage growth, the multi-cap fund category saw the highest growth of 85% in fiscal 2024, followed by small-cap funds at 82%.

Investor adoption of systematic investment plans (SIPs) continues to rise with monthly net inflows at around ₹19,300 crore in March 2024. For fiscal year 2024, the net inflows through SIPs stood at nearly ₹2 lakh crore versus ₹1.55 lakh crore in the previous fiscal year.

SIP assets stood at ₹10.71 lakh crore as of March 2024, accounting for over 20% of the industry assets. Further, the number of SIP accounts reached nearly 8.4 crore with around 17 lakh accounts added per month.