86 percent of equity assets are held by individual investors

Of the total Rs.3.20 lakh crore total equity assets, individual investors held Rs. 2.82 lakh crore in equity funds as on December 2014.

With equity markets scaling new highs, individual investors are flocking to equity funds. AMFI data shows that retail investors and HNIs collectively hold 86% of total equity assets as on December 2014.

Of the total Rs.3.20 lakh crore total equity assets, individual investors held Rs. 2.82 lakh crore in equity funds as on December 2014. In December, the total AAUM of equity mutual funds reached an all-time high of Rs. 3.20 lakh crore due to mark to market gains and inflows in existing schemes as well as new funds offers.  

Since the beginning of FY 2014-15, equity funds have seen positive inflows each consecutive month. From April to December 2014, the industry has attracted inflows of over Rs.51,000 crore in equity funds. Majority of this inflow came from retail investors and HNIs.  

In the last nine months, investments made by individual investors in mutual funds has increased by 32% from Rs. 3.99 crore in March 2014 to Rs. 5.25 lakh crore in December 2014. This indicates that the contribution of individual investors in overall MF AUM has increased from 44% in March 2014 to 46% in December 2014.

AMFI data shows that the share of equity oriented schemes in mutual fund assets has grown to 30% in December 2014 from 22% in March 2014. On the contrary, the contribution of debt funds in overall MF assets has slipped to 45% from 52% during the same period.

Institutional investors

While both retail and HNIs primarily had large chunk of investments in equity schemes, institutional investors preferred to invest in liquid and debt funds. Institutional investors dominate liquid funds and debt funds by holding 92% and 60% of assets respectively.

Due to the growth in individual investors share in MFs, the contribution of institutional investors has declined by 2% to 54% as on December 2014. However, the overall assets of institutional investors grew from Rs. 5.04 lakh crore in March 2014 to Rs. 6.09 lakh crore in December.