Indians invest record Rs.34,697 crore in equity MFs in May, SIPs continue to spike

Indians poured a record amount into equity mutual funds in May, driven by a wave of new thematic schemes that captured the market's attention. The inflows into equity mutual funds soared by 83% to reach an all-time high of ₹34,697 crore, up from ₹18,917.1 crore in April, as per the latest data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).

This increase in equity-oriented funds occurred despite a withdrawal from debt-oriented funds, which led to a decrease in overall net inflows into mutual funds. Small-cap funds attracted ₹2,724.7 crore in May, compared to ₹2,208.7 crore in April, while mid-cap schemes saw investments of ₹2,605.7 crore, up from ₹1,793.1 crore the previous month.

Large-cap funds also experienced a substantial rise, with inflows nearly doubling to ₹663.1 crore in May from ₹357.6 crore in April. Multi-cap funds saw inflows of ₹2,644.9 crore, slightly down from ₹2,723.9 crore in April. 

Sectoral and thematic funds achieved their highest inflows ever, totaling ₹19,213.4 crore, bringing the category's assets under management to ₹3.37 lakh crore, the second highest among equity-oriented funds. A significant portion of this surge came from the HDFC Manufacturing Fund's new fund offer, which alone garnered ₹9,563 crore.

The systematic investment plan (SIP) contributions remained robust, reaching nearly ₹21,000 crore, with equity-linked funds receiving the majority of these investments. The total SIP contribution in May hit a new record of ₹20,904.4 crore, up from ₹20,371 crore in April. The net SIP contribution, which accounts for outflows due to cancellations and the completion of SIP periods, stood at ₹9,226.1 crore in May, compared to ₹8,660 crore in April.

AMFI CEO V. Chalasani noted that SIP contributions have continued to grow despite a decline in overall financial savings. Liquid funds saw inflows of ₹25,873.4 crore in May, a sharp drop from approximately ₹1.03 lakh crore in April. Credit-risk funds experienced outflows of ₹540.5 crore, compared to ₹359 crore in April.

Total inflows into debt-oriented funds were approximately ₹42,295 crore in May, down from ₹1.9 lakh crore the previous month. Overall, mutual fund inflows totaled ₹1.11 lakh crore in May, a decrease from ₹2.39 lakh crore in April. Net assets under management increased to ₹58.9 lakh crore in May from ₹57.3 lakh crore in April.