AMFI CEO Venkat Chalasani expects SIP contributions to rebound in March, indicating sustained investor confidence despite short-term fluctuations.
| Photo Credit:
lakshmiprasad S
Equity inflows into mutual fund schemes increased 8 per cent last month to ₹25,978 crore, up from ₹24,029 crore in January, as investors used the market fall to accumulate more units.
Flexi and mid-cap funds continued to attract the highest inflow of ₹6,925 crore (₹7,672 crore) and ₹4,003 crore (₹3,185 crore), according to the Association of Mutual Funds of India data released on Tuesday.
However, SIP inflows dropped sharply to ₹29,845 crore from ₹31,002 crore in January, as MFs lost four days of debit mandate in February.
Venkat Chalasani, Chief Executive, AMFI said besides having less number of days, February 28 was bank holiday and the instalments slated for last 4 days of last month will now be accounted in March.
“The trend in February was similar in last two-three years and we expect SIP to bounce back in March despite the prevailing market conditions,” he added.
On Sebi decision to discontinue Children and Retirement funds, Chalasani said that AMFI has made a representation with Sebi on difficulty in closing the schemes with ‘immediate effect’ and hence the closure was extended to March-end.
“We will make another representation with Sebi on hardship the investors will face on closure of these two schemes and wait for the regulator to take final decision,” he added.
Both Children Fund and Retirement schemes have folio count of 62.86 lakh and attracted an inflow of Rs 247 crore and AUM was at Rs 57,663 crore as of February-end.
Hybrid schemes attracted lower investment of 31 per cent Rs 11,983 crore (Rs 17,356 crore), largely due to fall in multi-asset schemes inflow at Rs 8,476 crore (Rs 10.485 crore).
Gold ETFs attracted less investment of Rs 5,255 crore (Rs 24,040 crore) while silver ETFs recorded a net outflow of Rs 826 crore (inflow of Rs 9,463 crore).
Suranjana Borthakur, Head of Distribution & Strategic Alliances, Mirae Asset Investment Managers (India) said investors continued to show tremendous confidence in the markets despite ongoing geopolitical tensions, reflecting a growing maturity in their investment mindset.
Valuations in the broader markets have also moderated somewhat, which appears to be strengthening investor confidence in their long-term prospects, he added.
Nehal Meshram, Senior Analyst – Manager Research, Morningstar Investment Research India said despite the moderation, the inflows into gold ETFs reflect continued investor interest in gold-backed products.
While the fall in inflows was likely due to profit-booking, Meshram said it remained firmly positive, underscoring gold’s enduring appeal amid heightened market volatility and ongoing geopolitical risks.
Published on March 10, 2026