Mutual Fund News

The net assets under the management (AUM) of the Indian mutual fund industry at the end of December 2025 stood at Rs 80.23 lakh crore, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI). This is slightly lower as compared with the figure of Rs 80.80 lakh crore recorded in November 2025.

The AUM of open-ended plans fell to Rs 79.98 lakh crore in December 2025 from Rs 80.55 lakh crore in November 2025. Investors continued to be drawn to equity plans in this category, with net inflows of Rs 28,054.06 crore.

Within equity, Flexi Cap Fund drew the most significant inflows in December, attracting Rs 10,019.27 crore. Mid Cap Funds followed suit with inflows of Rs 4,175.81 crore, while ELSS saw net outflows of Rs 717.73 crore.

Debt funds witnessed net outflows in December, totaling Rs 1,32,410.37 crore. This category had recorded net outflows of Rs 25,692.63 crore in November. Liquid Funds recorded maximum outflows of Rs 47,307.95 crore. Other debt segments like Money Market Funds, Overnight Funds and Ultra Short Duration Funds also saw significant inflows.

Hybrid schemes, offering a mix of equity and debt exposure, recorded net inflows of Rs 10,755.57 crore in December 2025. This was largely driven by Arbitrage Funds, which attracted Rs 26,411.54 crore.

The systematic investment plan (SIP) contributions rose to Rs 31,002 crore in December 2025, up by 0.53% from Rs Rs 29,445 crore in November 2025. The number of contributing SIP accounts also rose from 9.42 crore in November to 9.79 crore in December, while SIP assets under management (AUM) climbed to Rs 16.63 lakh crore.

Change in Fund Manager:

Change in Fund Manager:

Change in Fund Manager:

Change in Fund Manager:

In a recently released circular, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has extended the timeline for the implementation of an additional incentives structure for mutual fund distributors for onboarding new individual investors from B-30 cities and new women investors from any city.

Earlier, the new incentive structure, aimed at promoting wider outreach and awareness, was scheduled to be effective from 01 February 2026. The market regulator SEBI has now extended this deadline to 01 March 2026.

According to the classification used in the mutual fund industry, B-30 refers to places beyond the top 30 cities.

Based on the feedback received from the industry, citing operational difficulties in putting in place the requisite systems and processes for smooth implementation of the additional incentive structure, SEBI has decided to extend the implementation timeline.

Accordingly, the new provisions will now come into effect from 01 March 2026, SEBI stated in its circular.

Under the new framework, asset management companies (AMCs) will pay these distributors 1% of the first lump-sum investment or the first-year SIP amount, up to Rs 2,000, provided the investor stays invested for at least a year.

This commission will come from the 2 basis points AMCs already set aside for investor education and will be paid over and above existing trail commissions.

However, no dual incentives would be allowed for the same woman investor from B-30 cities. The additional commission would not apply to ETFs, certain Fund of Funds, and very short-duration schemes like overnight, liquid, ultra-short, and low-duration funds.

The mutual fund distributors shall be eligible for additional commission for bringing new individual investors from B-30 cities, at the mutual fund industry level, and new women individual investors from both top 30 and B-30 cities.

Change in Fund Manager:

Details of Ms. Sneha Suhas

Age: 55 years

Designation: Chief Technology Officer

Qualification: B.E. in Computer Engineering, MBA in IT & Systems

Baroda BNP Paribas Arbitrage Fund ' Regular Plan ' Monthly IDCW Option & Direct Plan ' Monthly IDCW Option: Rs. 0.06 each

Change in Fund Manager:

Details of Mr. Kapil Udaiwal

Age: 48 years

Designation: President & Head - Human Resources

Qualification: B.Sc., Master in Labour Laws & Labour Welfare, PGDM (PM & HR)

The open-ended fund of funds will invest in passive equity funds and ETFs to provide diversified exposure across large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap segments through a structured allocation model. The scheme will begin with an equal allocation of one-third each to large, mid and small caps.

Allocations will be reviewed quarterly and rebalanced only if any segment deviates by more than 5% from its target weight. According to the fund house, this approach is intended to systematically rebalance portfolios by trimming outperforming segments and increasing exposure to underweighted segments, without relying on market timing.

The scheme aims to address challenges faced by investors in predicting market-cap leadership cycles, as leadership has historically rotated between large, mid and small caps across market cycles. By investing through passive instruments, the fund seeks to avoid structural large-cap bias seen in several flexicap strategies.

The benchmark for the scheme is the Nifty 500 Total Return Index. The minimum investment during the NFO period is Rs 500, with additional investments in multiples of Re 1. On an ongoing basis, the minimum lump sum investment remains Rs 500.

An exit load of 1% will be applicable if units are redeemed within 15 days from the date of allotment, with no exit load thereafter. The fund will be managed by Swapnil Mayekar for the equity component and Rakesh Shetty for the debt component.

Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company said the scheme is suitable for investors seeking long-term capital growth through diversified exposure to equity market segments using a passive investment approach.

Mahindra Manulife Aggressive Hybrid Fund:

Regular Plan Monthly ' IDCW: 0.18

Direct Plan Monthly ' IDCW: 0.18