Mutual fund assets surge 23% to hit record ₹65.74 lakh crore in FY25

Mutual fund assets surged 23% or over ₹12 lakh crore year-on-year to reach a record of ₹65.74 lakh crore in FY25, propelled by robust net inflows and mark-to-market gains amid buoyant equity and debt markets.

In comparison, the assets under management of the industry stood at ₹53.40 lakh crore in March 2024.

"The asset base expanded partly owing to mark-to-market (MTM) gains, spurred by equity markets clocking positive returns, as reflected in the Nifty 50 TRI and Sensex TRI rising 6% and 5.9%, respectively. Debt markets also contributed positively through MTM gains, supported by favourable yield movements," according to the Association of Mutual Funds in India's (AMFI) annual report released on Monday.

Also, the increase in AUM was attributed to net inflows summing up to ₹8.15 lakh crore during fiscal 2025.

The sharp surge in asset base was also reflected in the growing number of investors, mutual funds, with the number of folios reaching an all-time high of 23.45 crore and an investor base of about 5.67 crore.

A notable trend in the fiscal was a 33.4% year-on-year increase in folios of equity-oriented schemes to 16.38 crore. The scheme continued to constitute a lion's share of the folios at 70%.

Also, the folios of hybrid schemes increased by 16% to 1.56 crore, while other schemes, including index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), surged 48.3% to 4.15 crore folios. In contrast, debt-oriented scheme folios declined 3% to 69.5 lakh.

The systematic investment plans (SIPs) were popular among investors as flows into this segment rose sharply, with yearly contributions rising by 45.24% to ₹2.89 lakh crore in FY25. This substantial increase, along with MTM gains, saw SIP assets rise 24.6% to ₹13.35 lakh crore, thereby accounting for 20.31% share of the overall MF industry's AUM.

As of March 2025, the industry had a total of 5.34 crore unique investors. Of this, 26% or 1.38 crore were women.

"This represents an increase from 24.2% in March 2024, underscoring the growing financial independence and awareness among women. The rise in literacy rates and the growing presence of women in the workforce have been instrumental in enhancing their economic contributions and, as a result, women are now emerging as a key participant in the MF investor base," the report said.

Equity-oriented mutual funds saw a record inflow of ₹4.17 lakh crore, the highest ever in a financial year. The net inflows during the year exceeded twice the net inflows in the previous year. This, combined with valuation gains, propelled the AUM of equity-oriented schemes by 25.4% to ₹29.45 lakh crore at March-end 2025.

The surge in inflow across sub-categories within equity-oriented schemes was partly attributable to the successful launch of new fund offers (NFOs) during the year. A total of 70 NFOs in the equity category were launched in fiscal 2025, collectively mobilising ₹85,244 crore, marking an increase from the 58 schemes launched in fiscal 2024, which garnered ₹39,297 crore.

Debt MFs registered net inflows of ₹1.38 lakh crore last fiscal against net outflows of ₹0.23 lakh crore in fiscal 2024. The category's AUM jumped 20.5% to ₹15.21 lakh crore in March 2025 from ₹12.62 lakh crore in March 2024.