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A recent report by Axis AMC shed light on the burgeoning Indian mutual fund industry. Since March 2021, the MF industry has grown at a CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) of 23.65%, touching an AUM (asset under management) of Rs 67.25 lakh crore in October 2024. <keyword id="20300870" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Equity-Mutual-Funds" source="keywords">Equity mutual funds</keyword>, which garnered Rs 41,886.69 crore during the month, saw a 58.96% YoY growth. The biggest contributor to the equity segment was sectoral funds, which captured 29.3% of net equity sales in October 2024. In all, they brought in Rs 12,278.78 crore during October 2024. The AUM of <keyword id="20890471" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hybrid-Funds" source="keywords">hybrid funds</keyword> also stood at Rs 9.24 lakh crore during the month, registering an annual growth of 47.8% and inflows worth Rs 16,863.30 crore during October 2024. Amidst this, the arbitrage funds led in net sales, capturing 3.61% of their AUM with monthly inflows worth Rs 7,181.70 crores. There and more people are entering the Indian markets, as is evident in the growing SIP corpus (Systematic Investment Plans), which saw contributions worth Rs 25,323 crore in October 2024, a 54.7% year-over-year growth. In October 2024, about 63,69,919 new SIPs were registered, taking the number of SIP accounts to a record high of 10,12,34,212 The growth in equity investments was largely led by retail investors and HNIs (high-net-worth individuals). Since March 2021, the retail segment in mutual funds has seen a 31.2% CAGR, while banks and foreign investors have recorded a CAGR of 31.8% during the same period. Corporations were the biggest contributors to debt mutual funds. Notably, the AUM of debt funds grew 14.8% over the previous year to stand at Rs 10,65,037 crore as of October 2024. The category saw net sales worth Rs 47,699 crore last month. Also testimony to the growing interest of investors in mutual funds were the figures of <keyword id="23958398" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Passive-Mutual-Funds" source="keywords">passive mutual funds</keyword>, which recorded net sales worth Rs 8,025 crore during the month. Out of this, just index funds observed net sales of Rs 7,931 crore in the previous month. AUM from the top 30 Indian cities grew at 22.6% CAGR, whereas other cities grew at 27.8% CAGR since March 2021. FY25 also seemed to be the year where NFOs received an enthusiastic response from investors. So far, a total of 124 NFO schemes have managed to collect a total of over Rs 77,932 crore.

Mutual funds in spotlight: Industry grew at 23.65% CAGR since March 2021

Debt <keyword id="19929240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mutual-funds" source="keywords">mutual funds</keyword> saw massive outflows of Rs 1,13,833.95 crore in September 2024. Liquid funds made up about 50% of this, witnessing outflows of Rs 72,665.97 crore. This was followed by money market funds, which lost Rs 23,420.84 crore during the month. Investors continued to repose strong faith in <keyword id="20300870" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-mutual-funds" source="keywords">equity mutual funds</keyword>, which saw inflows worth Rs 34,419.26 crore during the month. The momentum in <keyword id="20444306" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sectoral-funds" source="keywords">sectoral funds</keyword> also continued, with them raking in Rs 13,254.63 crore in September. During the month, 4 new sectoral schemes were launched, which gathered a total of Rs 7,842 crore. This was the 43rd consecutive month for positive equities inflows, beginning March 2021. Multi-cap and large and mid-cap funds saw inflows of about Rs 3,500 crore last month, followed by flexi cap funds, which raked in Rs 3,214.57 crore. Amidst ongoing geopolitical concerns, investors chose to stay away from slightly risky investment avenues such as arbitrage funds, which lost Rs 3,531.93 crore during September. Arbitrage funds make money from price differences, which is generated by buying and selling similar securities simultaneously across different markets. Multi-asset allocation funds saw inflows worth Rs 4,070.37 crore during the month. Index funds and gold ETFs also saw funds worth Rs 1,960.29 crore and Rs 1,232.99 crore flowing in, respectively. September saw 13 new index funds launches, which amassed Rs 3,656 crore. All in all, 27 <keyword id="20867320" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="new-schemes" source="keywords">new schemes</keyword> were launched last month, which saw inflows worth Rs 14,575 crore. <h2>SIP accounts, AUM at all-time high</h2>The industry's net AUM (assets under management) stood at Rs 67,09,259.24 crores, with mutual fund folios also touching an all-time high of 21,05,15,684. The retail AUM, which comprises of equity, hybrid and solution oriented schemes, also touched an all-time high of Rs 40,44,098 crore, up from Rs 39,27,594 crore in August 2024. Inflows in SIP (Systematic Investment Plans) remained resilient, and witnessed an all-time high, with the number of new SIPs registered in September registered at 66,38,857. The <keyword id="20876064" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="SIP-AUM" source="keywords">SIP AUM</keyword> was also at its highest ever, at Rs 13,81,703.94 crores for September. This stood at Rs 13,38,944.73 crores for August 2024 The number of SIP accounts were also at their highest ever at 9,87,44,171, along with SIP contribution, which recorded an all-time high of Rs 24,508.73 crores last month. The MF industry also reached the milestone of having 5,01,22,609 unique investors in September.

Sectoral funds continue lapping up investor money, debt funds see massive outflows in September 2024, shows AMFI data

The <keyword id="20340200" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="assets-under-management" source="keywords">Assets Under Management</keyword> (<keyword id="20019621" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AUM" source="keywords">AUM</keyword>) of <keyword id="20300870" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-mutual-funds" source="keywords">equity mutual funds</keyword> have <keyword id="20641508" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="surged" source="keywords">surged</keyword> by 5.37 per cent sequentially to Rs 25,12,845.59 crore in July 2024 from Rs 23,84,727.69 crore in June 2024, <keyword id="22838645" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="PL-Wealth-Management" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="PL Wealth Management" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="PL Wealth Management">PL Wealth Management</keyword> said in a statement. The observation, which is based on 283 open-ended equity diversified funds, cited that 39 per cent of these funds have outperformed their respective benchmarks over the past month, ending July 31st, 2024, The cumulative total of funds that outperformed stood at 109 during the month ending July 2024 (one month). AUM measures the total market value of assets that a person or entity manages for clients or on behalf of investors. Under the <keyword id="21184260" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="large-cap-funds" source="keywords">large-cap funds</keyword>, about 58 per cent of <keyword id="19915334" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="schemes" source="keywords">schemes</keyword> outperformed on S&amp;P BSE 100 - TRI benchmark, out of 31 schemes observed by <keyword id="19999821" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Prabhudas-Lilladher" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Prabhudas Lilladher" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Prabhudas Lilladher">Prabhudas Lilladher</keyword>'s wealth management arm. About 24 per cent of schemes outperformed under the large and mid-cap funds, of which 29 were observed. Under the multi-cap funds about 40 per cent of schemes outperformed, whereas in the flexi-cap funds, the percentage of schemes outperforming was 33 per cent. Going further, about 38 per cent of schemes under the midcap outperformed. Interestingly, the data observed that not a single scheme in small-cap funds manages to outperform their respective benchmarks. According to the observations made by L Wealth Management, Value Contra Div Yield Funds was the best-performing category, where 78 per cent of the schemes outperformed the benchmark. It was followed by schemes of large-cap funds and multi-cap funds, which outperformed their respective benchmarks by 58 per cent and 40 per cent respectively, during July 2024. Large and mid-cap funds were the least performing fund category, with only 24 per cent of funds outperforming the benchmark, as shown in the analysis. <keyword id="22838646" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="PL-Capital-Group" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="PL Capital Group" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="PL Capital Group">PL Capital Group</keyword> specialises in research-driven advisory services in the Indian capital markets. The company's business is spread across 200 plus cities in India, catering to institutions, corporations, family offices, HNIs, and retail clients in India and globally.

Assets Under Management of equity mutual funds surged 5.4% sequentially in July: PL Wealth Management

<keyword id="19895437" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="investment" source="keywords">Investment</keyword> in <keyword id="20300870" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="equity-mutual-funds" source="keywords">equity mutual funds</keyword> surged over five-fold to Rs 94,151 crore in the June 2024 quarter against Rs 18,358 crore a year ago, driven by a strong <keyword id="21477327" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="economic-environment" source="keywords">economic environment</keyword>, supportive <keyword id="22575274" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="government-fiscal-policies" source="keywords">government fiscal policies</keyword>, <keyword id="19900618" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="investors" source="keywords">investors</keyword> confidence and robust <keyword id="21990858" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stock-return" source="keywords">stock return</keyword>. This has also pushed the industry's assets under management (<keyword id="20019621" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AUM" source="keywords">AUM</keyword>) by 59 per cent to Rs 27.68 lakh crore in June from Rs 17.43 lakh crore a year ago, data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (<keyword id="20090036" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="AMFI" source="keywords">AMFI</keyword>) showed. The robust gain in the asset base was also replicated in the growth of investors in equity mutual funds, with the number of folios closing at 13.3 crore, adding an investor base of over 3 crore. The significant gain in equity folios indicates broader participation across investor segments, driven by improved <keyword id="19929245" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-literacy" source="keywords">financial literacy</keyword> and accessible investment platforms, Trivesh D, COO of stock trading platform Tradejini, told PTI. According to the AMFI data, equity-oriented mutual fund schemes invested Rs 94,151 crore in the quarter ended June 2024. This comprises Rs 18,917 crore in April, Rs 34,697 crore in May and Rs 40,537 crore in June. The investment in equity-oriented mutual funds jumped five-fold to Rs 94,151 crore in the June quarter from Rs 18,358 crore in the quarter ended June 2023 and increased 32 per cent Rs 71,280 crore witnessed in the preceding March 2024 quarter. "The confluence of political stability, supportive government policies, and a favourable economic environment has significantly contributed to the impressive inflows into equity mutual funds, signalling a positive outlook for the sector," Trivesh said. Strong macroeconomic fundamentals, bolstered by supportive government fiscal policies like higher-than-budgeted tax collection growth, reduced revenue expenditures, and increased capital spending have helped in increasing the allocation to equity mutual funds, Feroze Azeez, Deputy CEO, Anand Rathi Wealth, told PTI. He further said that investors' confidence in the markets and historically strong returns given by Indian equities with relatively low risk also helped investors to move towards equity mutual funds. Additionally, the shift was further fuelled by a transition from traditional investments like deposits to mutual funds in pursuit of higher returns. "The long-term outlook remains positive, with expectations of 11-13 per cent annual returns for Indian equities, and equity mutual funds potentially delivering even higher returns," Azeez said. Within the equity segment, sectoral or thematic category attracted Rs 46,731 crore during the quarter under review, followed by Multi-cap (Rs 10,077 crore), Flexicap (Rs 8,387 crore), Large &amp; Midcaps (Rs 7,948 crore), Smallcap (Rs 7,197 crore) and Midcap (Rs 6,927 crore). Large-cap funds witnessed an infusion of Rs 1,991 crore during the April-June quarter of the current financial year (FY25). Moreover, inflows into the systematic investment plan (<keyword id="19956399" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="SIP" source="keywords">SIP</keyword>) have been rising continuously for the past several months. The monthly SIP contributions crossed the Rs 21,000 crore mark in June, with the total inflow reaching an all-time high of Rs 21,262 crore. This shows investors' commitment to disciplined and long-term investing. The fund infusion through the SIP route was Rs 62,537 crore in the April-June quarter of FY25, a remarkable surge from Rs 43,211 crore in the same quarter preceding the fiscal.

Investment in equity mutual funds surge 5-fold to Rs 94,151 cr in June qtr amid robust eco environment

<div type="image" title="Are Indians depositing less money in banks, or more in mutual funds? Turns out, it&amp;#39;s neither of those." msid="113663806" hostid="261" sizebytes="1121785"></div> Over the past few months, there’s been a lot of brouhaha about the lagging pace of <keyword id="20202062" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bank-deposits" source="keywords">bank deposits</keyword> in India. Simply put, the rate at which Indians are depositing their hard-earned money in banks has been falling constantly, and some blame the increasing financialisation of <keyword id="20751315" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="household-savings" source="keywords">household savings</keyword> in the country or the rising preference of Indians towards <keyword id="19929240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mutual-funds" source="keywords">mutual funds</keyword> and shares. So, the hypothesis is that people are choosing to invest more in mutual funds and the Indian <keyword id="19949641" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-markets" source="keywords">equity markets</keyword> through direct investments, IPOs, or NFOs, the money flowing into Indian banks in the form of deposits is slowing down. But is that really the case? <h2>A crisis or a phase?</h2><keyword id="19899808" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="RBI" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="RBI" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="RBI">RBI</keyword> data suggested that for the quarter ended June 2024, bank deposits grew at 11.7%. On the other hand, credit growth has outpaced this at 15%. This means that the outflow from banks as loans is far greater than the inflow into them in the form of deposits in Q1 of FY 2024-25. The situation largely saw cut-copy-paste in the first week of September as well, with loans registering a 13.3% YoY growth during the period, while deposits rose only 11.1%. This gap has only been widening for the last 3 years. Since deposits are how banks gather assets to further lend and earn interest income as a consequence, even a slight dip could set the alarm bells ringing for banks, and rightfully so. And truth be told, mutual funds are indeed taking on bank deposits in a big way. Per a report by Franklin Templeton, in August 2024, the AUM (assets under management) of Indian mutual funds, or the total funds managed by them, stood at 31.3% of total bank deposits in the country, up from 24.20% during the year-ago period. As of August 2024, the AUM of mutual funds stood at Rs 66.17 lakh crore, an all-time high. But all said and done, is this really the reason why the rate of bank deposits is falling behind? SBI has dismissed this to be a “statistical myth”, and experts point out that since equity and fund houses also keep the cash in their respective bank accounts, there’s no cause for concern. So, is financialization really to be blamed for the trailing tempo of deposits? Or is something else happening behind the scenes? We take a closer look: <h2>First, are household deposits really slowing down? And is that a cause of concern?</h2>Data from Motilal Oswal suggests the contrary. Deposits grew by around 10.4% between March 2020 and August 2024. Data from RBI also highlights that as of August 9, 2024, bank deposits witnessed a YoY growth of 10.8%. The loan-to-deposit ratio for the retail segment, which indicates what percentage of its total deposits the banks lend out as loans, has stayed at 77.5%, above the 77% mark for the tenth straight month. <div type="image" title="Yes, household deposits (as % of total deposits) have dipped, but the drop is far from significant" msid="113663882" hostid="261" sizebytes="306706"></div> Also, we can’t forego the fact that the share of Indian households in bank deposits has indeed slowed down. However, data from Axis AMC shows that the dip is marginal—from 63% in 2022 to 62% in 2023 and 61% in 2024. What has slowed down even more considerably is the share of government deposits in the aggregate bank deposits, which has dipped from 14% in 2018 to 9% in 2024. So, it's not just household deposits, you see. Moreover, as of March 2024, the collective CASA ratio (current and <keyword id="114757" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="savings-account" source="Orion">savings account</keyword> deposits) of all commercial banks in India stood at 41.00%, down from 43.1% in March 2023 and 45.2% in March 2022, marking a nearly 5% point decline over the past year, while still staying over the 10-year average of 39.2%. This implies that Indian banks are relying more on higher-cost funds (savings accounts), which can limit their profitability. <h2>What is this financialisation of savings we are talking about?</h2>Then again, there is no doubt about the growing affinity of Indians towards mutual funds and stock markets. Recent data from CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) highlights that India’s net direct tax collection surged by around 22%, driven exclusively by the significant uptick in the collection of Securities Transaction Tax (STT), which doubled to Rs 26,154 crore, from Rs 13,352 crore in the year-ago period. Why does this matter? STT is levied when you buy or sell equity shares on stock exchanges, sell <keyword id="6361918" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equity-mutual-funds" source="Orion">equity mutual funds</keyword>, and trade in futures and options in the equity segment. Such taxes, including the multiple other taxes in equity market investments, are considered as leakages as the money moves out of the economy into government coffers. Data from a ValueQuest report explains that over the last 20 years, the markets have handsomely rewarded the investors, generating over $900 billion in incremental value for them. This is the major driver behind the dramatic rise in investment flowing towards the equity markets. There’s further proof of this budding romance, if you check the demat pudding. The number of demat accounts, which are a primary requisite for participating in the stock markets, also burgeoned by 42.3 lakh in August 2024, taking India’s total tally of demat accounts beyond 17 crore. To put this in perspective, this is almost equivalent to the population of just 8 nations in the world, including China, the US, Brazil and more. Vivek Iyer, Partner, Grant Thornton Bharat thinks it's rather important, as well. “Financialisation of household savings in India is an indication of deepening capital markets in the market, especially from a retail investor standpoint. Bank deposits with a modest rate of return are no longer the only option for savings for investors. Investors today have more avenues for wealth creation in the form of public capital markets, which have democratized wealth creation and provided equality of opportunity to retail investors”, he says. Yes, Indians are investing more and more in the markets, and in mutual funds. But is it a sin to look out for inflation-beating returns, which the stock markets offer, and vanilla bank deposits don't? After all, the allure of 12-13% annual returns offered by <keyword id="45369" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="equities" source="Orion">equities</keyword> can certainly pale the stability offered by good old deposits, which generally do not go beyond 9% when it comes to annual returns. But all of this is not what is behind the slowdown. India is still a toddler in the school of savings financialization, with less than 10% of the population holding a demat account, and less than 5% of us saving in equities. That's a drop in the ocean of deposits, far inadequate to trigger a tsunami. <h2>Tell me why lagging deposits have nothing to do with Indians investing more in mutual funds!</h2>Says Shweta Rajani, Head - Mutual Funds, Anand Rathi Wealth Limited, “Households' equity holdings composition grew from 11.1% in FY 23 to 14.7% in FY 24. This trend reflects a growing awareness of investment options, empowering individuals to take control of their financial futures. Despite this transition towards equities, banks still hold a significant share of household financial savings—33.5% in FY24 compared to 34.9% in FY23”. Also, household savings and their subsequent financialization do not have much to do with deposit creation, which is entirely made by banks. What actually drives increased deposits is credit growth or increased lending. When interest rates are eased, people tend to borrow more and spend more, which circulates more money in the economy. For the past 4 years, RBI has been tightening the screws on interest rates, which raises the cost of borrowings, and makes it more expensive to take loans, putting a dampener on credit growth, but effectively curbing inflationary pressures. The last time RBI cut the repo rate by 40 basis points was back in May 2020, 4 years ago. The lag in <keyword id="19998084" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="deposit-growth" source="keywords">deposit growth</keyword> we’re witnessing is almost 3 years old. Coincidence much, or just good old economics at work? But with the Fed recently setting a rate cut precedent by slashing 50 bps off its interest rate, RBI is expected to follow suit in the next MPC (Monetary Policy Committee) meeting, scheduled for November 2024. A rate cut would ease the aforementioned high cost of borrowing, and increase loan-taking for corporates and institutional investors, thereby stoking consumption in the economy. And then, deposit creation in banks is likely to return to its former glory. If not, then that would be a curious case to unravel! But that worry is for another day. Do you have insights or personal experience to share on your personal finances or money? Contact us at <a target="_blank" class="c-link" href="mailto:businessinsider@timesinternet.in">businessinsider@timesinternet.in</a>.

Simply Put: A Deposit Dilemma — What's the fuss about a crisis in Indian bank deposits? Are mutual fund investments to blame?

<keyword id="19896016" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="new-delhi" source="keywords">New Delhi</keyword>, Equity mutual funds experienced a net inflow of Rs 21,780 crore in January, making it the highest monthly infusion in nearly two years, propelled by investors' continued preference for small-cap funds. In comparison, an inflow of around Rs 17,000 crore was seen in the category in December, according to the data released by the <keyword id="20090034" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="association-of-mutual-funds" source="keywords">Association of Mutual Funds</keyword> in <keyword id="19895063" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="india" source="keywords">India</keyword> (<keyword id="6359050" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amfi" source="Orion">AMFI</keyword>) on Thursday. The flow in January was the highest since March 2022, when equity-oriented mutual funds witnessed an inflow of Rs 28,463 crore. Also, the latest flow marks the 35th consecutive month of net inflows in equity funds. Barring value fund, all categories experienced inflow in equity segments. The category was aided by fund collection to the tune of Rs 4,805 crore in thematic funds, followed by Rs 3,257 crore in small-cap funds and Rs 3,039 crore in multi-cap funds. The highlight of this month was the fund flows into the large-cap category at Rs 1,287 crore, which was at the highest-level in more than 13 months. "With midcaps at 15 per cent and small caps at 20 per cent premiums, investors are realising the considerable valuation gap with the large-cap segment, and accordingly making adjustments to their investments. "Though small-cap funds garnered greater than Rs 3,000 crore of net flows for the fourth consecutive month, the quantum was lower by Rs 600 crore on a month-on-month basis," <keyword id="20504519" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gopal-kavalireddi" source="keywords">Gopal Kavalireddi</keyword>, Vice President of Research at FYERS, said. Apart from equities, debt-oriented schemes witnessed a net inflow of Rs 76,469 crore in January after withdrawing funds in the preceding two months. The segment had witnessed a net outflow of Rs 75,560 crore in December and Rs 4,707 crore in November. Additionally, hybrid schemes saw an inflow of Rs 20,637 crore. Overall, the mutual fund industry has witnessed an inflow of Rs 1.23 lakh crore in the month under review as compared to an outflow of Rs 40,685 crore in December. The strong inflow pushed the mutual fund industry's assets under management to Rs 52.74 lakh crore in January-end as compared to Rs 50.78 lakh crore at the end of December.

Equity mutual fund inflow hits almost 2-yr high of ₹21,780-cr in January

Focused <keyword id="19929240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mutual-funds" source="keywords">mutual funds</keyword>, which invest in a concentrated portfolio of <keyword id="19905382" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stocks" source="keywords">stocks</keyword>, are gaining traction among investors with the <keyword id="22748135" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="asset-base" source="keywords">asset base</keyword> of the category growing to Rs 1.43 lakh crore in three months ended June 2024, marking an increase of 31% from a year ago. Interestingly, some of the focused funds offered by the mutual fund houses such as <keyword id="22748136" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Invesco-India-Focused-Fund" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Invesco India Focused Fund" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Invesco India Focused Fund">Invesco India Focused Fund</keyword>, Mahindra Manulife Focused Fund, JM Focused Fund, and <keyword id="19896378" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hdfc" source="keywords">HDFC</keyword> Focused 30 Fund delivered a remarkable return of 40-60% in the past year, industry data showed. Focused funds are a type of mutual fund where the fund manager selects a concentrated portfolio of stocks, typically limited to a maximum of 30 due to regulatory constraints. This requires the fund manager to be highly skilled in stock selection, as they need to identify the best investment opportunities across the market without bias toward any specific market cap or sector. According to data from the <keyword id="20090034" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="association-of-mutual-funds" source="keywords">Association of Mutual Funds</keyword> in India (Amfi), the assets under management (AUM) of the focused funds were at Rs 1.43 lakh crore in the June quarter 2024-25 as compared to Rs 1.09 lakh crore in April-June FY24. This growth highlights the appeal of focused funds as an alternative to portfolio management services (<keyword id="19950020" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pms" source="keywords">PMS</keyword>), especially with recent tax changes that make PMS less attractive due to higher costs and tax implications, Feroze Azeez, Deputy CEO, of Anand Rathi Wealth Ltd, said. "With the increase in taxation on both small-term capital gain tax and long-term capital gain tax, PMS portfolios are expected to see a drop in post-tax returns. For example, a PMS portfolio generating a pre-tax return of 14 % could see post-tax returns drop from 11.73 % to 11.29 %. This shift could lead to fund managers churning portfolios less frequently, which in turn will be affecting returns for investors," he added. Focused funds follow a similar concentrated portfolio strategy where the fund manager picks the top stocks and offers flexibility across market caps. Thus, becoming a more attractive option for investors looking to optimize their returns. Industry experts recommend investing in focused funds through systematic investment plans (SIPs) as a smart strategy in the current market environment of sector rotation and high valuations. Since these funds invest in a small number of stocks, SIPs can help reduce risk by spreading out investments over time. Overall, there are 31 focused schemes offered by different mutual fund houses in the category. These schemes have given returns of 19-60% in the last one year. In terms of returns, smaller funds have performed exceptionally well. The Invesco India Focused Fund delivered a remarkable return of over 60% in the past year, while Mahindra Manulife Focused Fund provided around 50% returns and JM Focused Fund offered a return of 45% during the period. With a corpus of Rs 1,552 crore as of June 2024, Mahindra Manulife Focused Fund has consistently performed well, securing the second rank for 1, 2, and 3-year periods. The fund delivered returns of 50%, 32%, and 26% over these periods, respectively. HDFC Focused 30 Fund achieved the top rank over the 3 years with a return of 28.63 %, while JM Focused Fund secured the third rank with a 25 % return during the same period. "The success of focused funds underscores the importance of skilled fund management and strategic stock selection," an industry expert said. Focused funds opt for a more targeted strategy rather than the broad diversification typical of traditional mutual funds. This approach helps fund managers make investments in a carefully selected group of stocks, reflecting their strongest investment beliefs. The concentrated nature of these portfolios requires careful selection of each stock, as the fund's performance heavily depends on these choices. Although these funds hold a limited number of stocks, they are structured to be sufficiently diversified to effectively manage risk. Overall, the assets of the equity mutual funds rose to Rs 27.6 lakh crore in June 2024 from Rs 17.43 lakh crore in June 2023.

Focused MFs' asset base rises 31% to Rs 1.43 lakh cr in June qtr; up to 60% returns last year

The <keyword id="20449324" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Finance-Bill" source="keywords">Finance Bill</keyword> 2024 was passed by <keyword id="19895394" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lok-Sabha" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Lok Sabha" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Lok Sabha">Lok Sabha</keyword> on Wednesday evening, with a few amendments moved by the government. Replying to the debate, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman said the approach of the government has been to bring greater simplification of <keyword id="19987671" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="tax" source="keywords">tax</keyword> laws and procedures and enable growth and employment in the country. She responded to points made by members. The Finance Minister clarified that in real estate, the roll over provisions have not been withdrawn and are applicable. She said if the capital gain in a property transaction is invested in buying another one or two properties up to a maximum value of Rs 10 crore, no capital gain tax is required to be paid on such profits. <keyword id="20619608" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="capital-gains" source="keywords">Capital gains</keyword> can also still be invested in bonds which are notified under Section 54 of the Income Tax Act up to a maximum of Rs 50 lakh annually and save on taxes. To give relief on budget proposals, Sitharaman also moved an amendment in the Finance Bill on the changes in the capital gains tax on <keyword id="20412285" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="property-transactions" source="keywords">property transactions</keyword>. The amendment implies that taxpayers can avail either a lower tax of 12.5% without indexation or a rate of 20% with indexation, if the property is acquired prior to July 23, 2024, the day union budget was presented in the Lok Sabha. Sitharaman clarified that taxpayers can compute taxes under both provisions and choose to pay tax under the scheme where lower tax is applied. Effectively, July 23, 2024, is now set as the cut-off date for the calculation of the capital gains versus the earlier cut-off of 2001. Sitharaman said she has proposed these amendments as some members have raised hypothetical calculation to prove that under new provisions taxpayers will have to pay higher taxes. The new tax proposals on capital gains tax was brought in to bring in parity among different asset classes like equities, mutual funds and real estate. In the Finance Bill introduced on July 23, the Finance Minister had proposed a flat long term capital gains tax of 12.5% with no <keyword id="943856" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="indexation-benefit" source="Orion">indexation benefit</keyword>s, prior to it property transactions used to be taxed at 20% with indexation benefit. The minister also clarified that the grandfathering proposal will be allowed only for individual and Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) taxpayers and not for companies and Non Resident Individuals. They have to pay flat 12.5% LTCG tax without indexation. The proposed amendment will apply not only on real estate transactions, but also on unlisted equity transactions, which are done before July 23, 2024. All such transactions will be taxed at 10% long term capital gains instead of FY24-25 budget provision of 12.5% tax. With the opposition members demanding removal of <keyword id="19951327" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="GST" source="keywords">GST</keyword> on health insurance, Sitharaman said tax was there on medical insurance even before GST was introduced. "There was already a Service Tax on medical insurance, before the GST was introduced. This is not a new tax, it was already there in all the states. Those protesting here, did they discuss regarding the removal of this tax in their states? Did they write to the Finance Ministers of their respective states about it and asked them to raise it in the GST Council where states have 2/3rd part? No, but they are protesting here. This is their double standards, this is their drama," she said. "Wrongful protests have happened recently, and comments have been passed on the basis of a news report which suggested that the 'Centre has pocketed Rs. 24,529 crores of health insurance premiums alone'. This is incorrect and highly misleading. The GST rate of 18% on health insurance comprises of 9% CGST and 9% SGST. Thus, of the total collections of Rs 24,529 crores from health insurance in the last 3 years, Half of it, Rs. 12,264 crores, went straight to the states as SGST. It doesn't even come to the Centre," she added. The minister said that apart from this, roughly 41%of the Centre's share of GST collection on health insurance is devolved back to the states again, as part of Tax Devolution as per the Finance Commission's formula. Sitharaman said the new income tax regime is simpler and offers lower income tax rates for individuals. "It gives flexibility to the taxpayer to see where he wants to put his money in the absence of exemptions which is available in the old income tax regime. The old regime has not been dissolved and is still an alternative to the new tax regime. It still offers benefits of various deductions such as interest on home loan, etc. Individuals without business income can choose between regimes once and can revert back too. Hence, a choice has been provided to assesse," she said. For the previous Assessment Year 2023-24 till December 31, 2023, about 3.8% of taxpayers opted for the new tax regime, which equates to 30.93 lakh individuals, from a total of 7.98 crore ITRs filed in the categories of ITR-1 to ITR-4, she said. "However, for the Assessment Year 2024-25 until July 31, 2024, there was a dramatic increase in adoption of the new regime, with approximately 72.8% of taxpayers choosing the new tax regime. This represents about 5.25 crore individuals, out of a total of 7.22 crore ITRs filed in the same category." Sitharaman said this shows a substantial shift in taxpayer preference towards the new tax regime, over the span of just one year. "Taxpayers opting for the new regime does not mean savings and investments are not happening in the economy by the middle-class. Due to growth in fintech, better awareness, and ease of investment due to UPI, e-KYC, progressive regulations, investments in mutual funds have increased tremendously. On an average, 17.88 lakh new folios have been added every month in the last 5 years since June 2019. The number of unique mutual fund investors has grown from under 1 crore in 2014 to about 4 crore today," she added. The Finance (No.2) Bill, 2024 was passed after amendments moved by opposition were negatived. Sitharaman said the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been to establish a simple, efficient and fair technology-driven taxation regime in the country. "So, simplification and ease of compliance for the taxpayer has been the primary objective. In the last 10 years, and this year, in the third term of PM Modi, the approach to taxation has been to simplify it, reduce the burden on taxpayer and make sure it is transparent and equitable," she said. "This year also, our approach has been that we bring in greater simplification of tax laws and procedures, and that we enable growth and employment in this country," she added. Sitharaman presented the Union Budget in Parliament on July 23. This is the first full budget of the NDA government led by PM Modi. The BJP-led alliance won a third successive term earlier this year. The Lok Sabha took up discussion on the Finance Bill after the Appropriation Bill for the central government's expenditure for 2024-25 was passed by the House on Monday. The Finance Bill will now be discussed by Rajya Sabha. The passage of bill will complete the budget process.

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