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Below the Perspective on AMFI Data by Sanjay Agarwal, Senior Director, CareEdge Ratings.

Equity fund inflows remained resilient in March 2026, even as gold ETF inflows moderated. Equity mutual funds attracted strong inflows of  Rs.40,450 crore, a sharp increase from  Rs.25,978 crore in February, underscoring sustained investor participation in market-linked instruments despite ongoing equity market volatility. Notably, equity fund inflows have remained positive for five consecutive years and continue to account for a growing share of total industry assets.

 Flows into other schemes, including ETFs, also strengthened, with inflows rising to  Rs.30,768 crore from  Rs.13,879 crore in the previous month, offering additional support to overall industry flows. In contrast, gold ETFs witnessed some cooling, with inflows declining to  Rs.2,266 crore in March from  Rs.5,255 crore in February. While this reflects moderation following a period of strong demand, investor interest in gold remains broadly intact.

 Debt mutual funds, however, recorded substantial net outflows of  Rs.2.94 lakh crore during the month, reversing the  Rs.42,106 crore inflows seen in February. These outflows were largely the result of quarter-end institutional and treasury-related adjustments, particularly within liquid and short-term fund categories, rather than a fundamental shift in investor sentiment.

 Overall, the data highlights a divergence in investor behaviour retail participation in equity funds continues to strengthen, while large institutional redemptions from debt funds weighed heavily on aggregate industry flows. Consequently, the mutual fund industry’s assets under management declined sequentially by 10.1% to  Rs.73.73 lakh crore in March 2026. This decline was driven by net outflows of  Rs.2.39 lakh crore during the month, compared with net inflows of  Rs.94,543 crore in February, reflecting seasonal debt fund redemptions and mark-to-market losses.

 Additionally, 24 new fund offerings were launched in March 2026, collectively mobilising  Rs.3,985 crore. Passive funds, including index funds and ETFs, accounted for 42.1% of the total mobilisation, while thematic funds represented a 33.8% share.

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