SIP contributions hit a record high, passive AUM crosses Rs 15 trillion and retail investors stay put through the worst equity correction in years. Antique Stock Broking says the industry’s structural growth story is intact.
India’s mutual fund industry has done held together while everything around it has not.
Equity markets are down over 13% from their February highs, foreign institutional investors have pulled out billions, crude oil is above $100 a barrel and geopolitical uncertainty has rattled sentiment across asset classes.
And yet, net equity and hybrid fund flows have amounted to Rs 4.1 trillion year-to-date in FY26 — nearly matching the highest-ever annual figure of Rs 4.85 trillion recorded in all of FY25.
That the industry is this close to a record in a year as difficult as this one says something important about how deeply the habit of investing has taken root among Indian households.
According to a note by Antique Stock Broking, much of the credit goes to the systematic investment plan, or SIP — the monthly contribution model that has become the backbone of retail investing in India.
The SIP Keeps Running
Monthly SIP flows have nearly quadrupled from an average of Rs 80 billion during FY19–21 to Rs 310 billion in January 2026, the highest ever recorded. SIPs now account for nearly 75% of net active equity and hybrid flows, up from around 30% five years ago.
That is a meaningful structural shift. When markets fall, SIP investors have historically tended to stay invested rather than redeem — which means the industry now has a far more stable and predictable flow base than it did in previous cycles.
For the mutual fund industry, and for the broader equity market, that consistency matters. It cushions sharp drawdowns, reduces redemption pressure on fund managers and keeps long-term capital in the system even when short-term sentiment turns negative.
Passive Investing Rising
The other major trend the note highlights is the sustained rise of passive investing. Passive fund AUM has grown from Rs 1.65 trillion in FY20 to Rs 15.23 trillion as of February 2026, and now constitutes 19% of total mutual fund industry AUM, up from just 7% six years ago.
The number of folios in passive funds has risen from 3.16 million in March 2020 to 55.7 million by February 2026. Lower costs, simplicity and greater awareness have all played a part.
Gold and silver ETFs have grown fourteen-fold to Rs 2.7 trillion since FY23, suggesting investors are also using passive vehicles to diversify beyond equities — particularly during periods of uncertainty like the present one.
The industry is also finding new growth vectors. The Specialised Investment Fund, or SIF, has seen its AUM scale nearly fourfold since October 2025 to Rs 97 billion.
The market regulator has also proposed the introduction of Life Cycle Funds, which would cater to goal-based investors and could deepen the industry’s reach further.
Antique expects net flows to exceed Rs 5–6 trillion annually in the medium term, implying roughly 10% CAGR growth. For AMC companies, the brokerage projects mid-teens earnings growth at the sector level, with stronger performers likely to deliver high-teens earnings growth over the medium term.
ICICI AMC and Nippon AMC are its preferred picks according to Antique Stock Broking, with HDFC AMC and ABSL AMC also flagged as interesting at current valuations
The broader takeaway? In a market year defined by volatility and uncertainty, India’s mutual fund investors have largely stayed the course. That is good for the industry, good for the companies that run it. Given how much of that money flows into equities, good for the market as a whole.