In 6 months, new direct MF investments rise 45% in B30 locations

Direct plans are witnessing faster penetration in beyond-30 (B-30) locations than in major urban centres (T-30). In the first half of FY 2022, number of direct plan folios (individual investors) went up 45% in B30 locations compared to 37% growth in T30 folios, shows latest AMFI data.

As of September-end 2021, direct folios of B-30 individual investors stood at 1.14 crore compared to 79 lakh at the end of March 2021. During the same period, direct folio count of T-30 investors rose from 1 crore to 1.4 crore.

"The period marked the launch of several NFOs. Many B30 investors put money into them. Due to low base, even if a small number of investors would have taken the direct route, the overall percentage would have gone up," said Jimmy Patel, MD and CEO at Quantum AMC.

In the case of regular plans, the growth in folio count was uniform across geographical categorisations.  With 8% growth in six months, regular folios from T30 locations rose to 4.98 crore from 4.61 crore. Folios from B30 areas surged 8% to 3.61 crore from 3.33 crore during April-September period.

B30 locations are ahead of top 30 cities in overall folio growth as well. Data shows that folios from B30 areas surged 15% in the last six months compared to 13% growth in folios from T30 cities.

The growth in AUM of individual investors was uniform across locations and channels. The T30 AUM went up 20% during the April-September period to Rs 15.4 lakh crore. With a similar growth, B30 AUM rose to Rs 5.19 lakh crore during the period.