Monthly inflows in Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs) of mutual funds could nearly double to about ₹40,000 crore by December 2025, Swarup Mohanty, Vice-Chairman & CEO, Mirae Asset Investment Managers (India), has said.
This is against SIP inflows of ₹23,332 crore seen in July 2024. In May 2018, monthly inflows were just ₹7,304 crore.
“If the equity markets continue like this, average monthly SIP inflows of ₹40,000 crore could happen earlier than December 2025,” Mohanty said here on Friday.
Currently, the number of SIP accounts stands at it highest ever of 9.33 crore (as of July 2024). The SIP culture could expand as and when ₹250 SIP becomes a reality.
Mohanty acknowledged that huge liquidity flows play a critical role in the buoyant equity markets. “It is the tail wagging the dog. It is liquidity that is driving the market. Right or wrong, I am not commenting,” he said.
Interestingly, he had predicted last year that monthly SIP inflows in the mutual fund industry would touch ₹25,000 crore by December 2024. Going by the current trend, monthly SIP flows may touch that level before December 2024.
Rapid growth of AUM
Mirae Mutual Fund, which started its journey in 2008, has assets under management (AUM) of a little under ₹2 lakh crore.
“We were hoping to announce AUM of ₹2 lakh crore today. But we are short of it by ₹200 crore,” Mohanty said here.
The frenetic growth in recent years can be gauged from the fact that AUM was only ₹22,000 crore in 2018.
As on date Mirae Mutual Fund is an equity dominated fund house with ₹1.6 lakh crore accounted for by equity schemes. “Going forward, we want to diversify into debt-oriented products and not be equity dominated,” Mohanty told businessline here.
Demographic dividend in MF industry
Noting that the demographic dividend is playing out in the mutual fund industry, Swarup said India (as the youngest country) will be the highest wealth generating country in the world in the next 8-10 years.
“What used to be 65 per cent of Indians at low income levels in 2005, will drop to 15 per cent in 2030. There is going to be some serious wealth created in this country in the next six to eight years,” he said.
The highest number of incremental family offices across the world will be registered in India in the next few years.
In the current year-to-date, Mirae has added ten lakh customers with an average age of 29. “The young today are educated, economically superior, their knowledge is far superior, and hence, their approach to investing will be completely different.
“We feel probably on the products side that we are a little lower in risk profile. I suspect we will start riskier products in the market,” he said.
Products targeted at the young have to be different, otherwise they will look elsewhere and invest in other risky products. “Are we understanding them or are we looking at them from the lens of the past? That is the real question,” he said.
The flow of monies into equities will see further change and more products tailored for the youth will have to be rolled out.
Equity market outlook
Asked about the outlook for equities, Swarup said: “We remain extremely constructive on the market. There could be some time correction in pockets that are expensive.” He, however, did not put any number as the fund house view to be the forecast for Nifty50 or Sensex.