Equity mutual fund inflows declined 19% month-on-month to ₹24,671 crore in October from ₹30,405 crore in September, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
Despite the moderation in flows, total industry assets under management (AUM) climbed to a record ₹79.87 lakh crore, compared with ₹75.61 lakh crore in the previous month.
Analysts attributed the softer flows to profit booking after the recent market rally and the impact of festive-season liquidity needs.
“While it’s a decent net inflow in absolute terms, the moderation could be attributed to profit booking by investors given the sharp surge in equity markets along with the festive season,” said Himanshu Srivastava, Associate Director – Manager Research, Morningstar India. “The overall trend continues to reflect sustained investor confidence in equities,” he added.
Broad-based inflows across categories
Among categories, large-cap funds saw net inflows of ₹972 crore, down from ₹2,319 crore in September. Mid-cap funds attracted ₹3,807 crore, lower than the previous month’s ₹5,085 crore, while small-cap funds drew ₹3,476 crore, compared with ₹4,363 crore earlier.
Sectoral and thematic funds maintained steady investor interest, with inflows rising to ₹1,366 crore from ₹1,221 crore month-on-month.
Conversely, equity-linked savings schemes (ELSS) witnessed net outflows of ₹665 crore, widening from ₹308 crore in September.
Debt and hybrid flows
On the other hand, debt-oriented mutual funds recorded net inflows of ₹1.59 lakh crore in October, compared to an outflow of ₹1.01 lakh crore in September.
The surge was primarily led by liquid funds, which saw inflows of ₹89,375 crore.
Money market funds followed with inflows of ₹17,916 crore, while ultra-short duration funds and overnight funds attracted ₹15,067 crore and ₹24,051 crore, respectively.
Hybrid schemes reported robust participation, with inflows jumping to ₹14,156 crore from ₹9,397 crore.
Passive and commodity segments
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) registered inflows of ₹6,182 crore, down from ₹8,151 crore month-on-month. Gold ETFs attracted ₹7,743 crore, slightly below September’s ₹8,363 crore.
New fund offerings (NFOs) contributed ₹6,062 crore in October, a sharp increase from ₹1,959 crore in September.
Rohit Sarin, Co-Founder, Client Associates, said the broad-based participation across equity, debt, and hybrid categories indicates growing investor maturity. “Equity inflows, though moderated, remain resilient across flexi-cap, mid-cap, and thematic categories, underscoring continued conviction in India’s long-term growth story,” he said.