Despite the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) and the government's recent initiatives to attract foreign capital, which are expected to alleviate pressure on long-duration bonds, most debt fund managers are maintaining a cautious stance, favouring shorter-duration papers due to global uncertainties and potential future rate hikes.
Net mutual fund inflows into active equity schemes in India plummeted by 40 per cent month-on-month in May, reaching a one-year low of 22,908 crore, primarily due to weaker lump-sum investments and increased redemptions amidst significant market volatility and global uncertainties.
The SIF vertical, which allows MFs to offer complex products to relatively sophisticated investors, has managed to garner scale in just seven months of the launch of the first products.
Most actively-managed equity mutual fund schemes outperformed their benchmarks despite volatility across domestic equity markets during the past year.
Indian mutual funds have significantly reduced their exposure to the information technology (IT) sector, with holdings now at an eight-year low of 6.7% in April 2026, driven by weak earnings growth, global demand slowdown, and concerns over AI-led disruption.
Investments under the framework would remain voluntary for employees.
Net investments into equity mutual fund schemes in India remained elevated at approximately 38,440 crore in April, despite a slight dip from March's high and a 3% month-on-month decline in Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) inflows.
'As re-industrialisation gathers pace across regions like Asia, Europe and the US, a wide range of products and inputs will see demand.'
Direct plans of mutual fund schemes added nearly 21 million individual investor folios in FY26 (as of February), surpassing regular plans' 15 million net additions, marking only the second time direct plans have outpaced regular plans in annual folio growth, despite turbulent equity markets.
Net inflows into equity mutual fund schemes moderated in FY26, falling by 27 per cent to about 3 trillion till February, as choppy markets and global uncertainties prompted investors to shift towards safer options like hybrid funds and gold ETFs.
Uncertainty stemming from the US-Iran conflict has significantly impacted India's mutual fund industry, leading to a sharp decline in new fund offers (NFOs) in March, despite numerous regulatory approvals. This geopolitical tension, coupled with existing market strain and distributor hesitation, has dampened investor sentiment and affected overall inflows.
Analysts say long-term investors may still benefit, but recommend limiting bullion exposure to around 10 per cent.
The highlight in January, with no surprise, has been flows into gold and silver ETFs.
Domestic gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) saw their holdings jump 65 per cent to 95 tonnes in 2025, elevating Indian ETFs to sixth place globally, going by holdings of the yellow metal. At the end of 2024, they ranked eighth with 57.5 tonnes of holding, according to an analysis of data from the World Gold Council (WGC).
'Multi-asset funds have cornered 30 per cent of hybrid fund inflows in 2025, reflecting a growing preference for diversified portfolios that combine equity, debt and commodities.'
'The bigger unknown remains global geopolitics, which is inherently unpredictable, including developments in our neighbourhood.' 'Another concern is the increasing tilt of government finances towards welfare subsidies, especially at the state level.' 'This could constrain capital expenditure, which is critical for long-term growth.'
Global risks include a potential delay in the US-India trade agreement, the possibility of a sharp correction in US equity markets, and renewed geopolitical tensions.
2025 marked a shift in investor preference when it comes to MF schemes.
Gold ETFs attracted around Rs 11,700 crore, the highest in a calendar month.
'The volatility in the stock markets since September 2024 has hurt the pace of accretion of new investors.'
