Assets under management of retirement mutual funds jumps 256% in 5 years

Rising awareness of financial planning has fueled a 256 % increase in retirement mutual fund AUM in the last five years, according to a report. Factors such as rising healthcare costs, increasing nuclear families, and higher life expectancy are likely to fuel further growth in this sector, an ICRA Analytics report said.

"Assets under Management (AUM) of these funds have grown by over 256 % in the last five years, reaching Rs 29,903 crore in July 2024, compared to Rs 8395 crore in July 2019," it said.

ICRA said the growing awareness has led to a surge in the number of folios, which has increased by 17.44 % in the last five years to 29.36 lakh in July 2024, up from 25 lakh in July 2019. The number of schemes has also increased from 21 in 2019 to 29 as of July 2024.

In July 2024, retirement funds received net inflows worth Rs 147.16 crores. The net inflows dipped in the month prior, standing at Rs 125.06 crore. Retirement funds have seen a consistent stream of inflows this year, with the January-March quarter recording inflows worth Rs 406.90 crore, which grew slightly to Rs 602.46 crore between April-June 2024.

A retirement mutual fund is a specialized investment vehicle, also known as a solution oriented fund, which is designed to provide a secure and comfortable post-retirement life. The fund focuses more on equity, or growth opportunities early on in the tenure of the fund. But, in order to provide stability, the fund begins to rebalance and invests more in debt securities, as the individual ages and approaches retirement, where they will need a constant stream of income.

These funds invest in both equity and debt, aiming to balance wealth appreciation and preservation offering a regular income stream during retirement. The focus is largely on investing in steady instruments such as government bonds and more, in order to cushion any equity-related risks. Tpically, these funds have a lock-in period of five years or until retirement, which is generally between 58-60 years. However, experts note that a 5-year lock-in period could be discouraging for some investors.

The average compound annualised returns on these funds stood at 26.21 %, 12.97 % and 14.09 % for a one-year, three-year and five-year period, the analysis found.