Whole-time member of the Amarjeet Singh on Friday called for innovation in designing, distributing and communicating products to increase the number of investors. At the same time, better financial returns along with governance in investing companies, will be key to measuring the progress of the mutual fund industry.
“Less than 5 per cent of India’s population participates in mutual funds as compared to the United States where mutual fund penetration is over 50 per cent,” Singh said while addressing the Mutual Fund Summit organised by ASSOCHAM here. The assets under management of the Indian mutual fund industry have increased nearly six-fold to ₹81.58 lakh crore as on May 31, 2026, ₹13.82 lakh crore in May 2016.
In the last five years alone, the industry has almost tripled in size. In March 2026, the ratio of MF AUM to GDP crossed 21 per cent, an all-time high. The number of unique mutual fund investors is now 6 crore as against a little over 1 crore a decade ago with individual investors now accounting for close to two-thirds of total MF AUM.
However, he opined that he progress of the mutual fund industry cannot be measured through AUM, folio counts, or transaction volumes alone. What matters ultimately is outcomes: better financial returns for investors, more productive allocation of household savings, and stronger governance in investee companies.
According to Singh, despite all these, the opportunity ahead remains considerable. To bring in millions of households, who are yet to invest in mutual funds, he presented a blueprint. “Reaching them will require innovation in product design, distribution, and investor communication, alongside a steadfast commitment to investor protection, because trust, once lost, is very difficult to rebuild,” he said.
Giving an overview of efforts to deepen the ecosystem, Singh talked about progress about Specialised Investment Fund (SIF). As on May 31, 2026, SIFs have already garnered net assets under management of over ₹13,500 crore, spread across more than 56000 investor folios. Across 21 investment strategies launched, the maximum funds have been mobilised under the Hybrid Long Short investment strategy. This indicates a growing investor appetite for differentiated investment solutions within a well-regulated ecosystem,” he said.
In this context, “SEBI and NISM are working together to bring out a Combined Mutual Fund–SIF Distributor Certification Examination, which will be a single certification for distributors intending to distribute both mutual fund and SIF products,” Singh informed. This initiative aims to strengthen professional competency and ensure that the entities involved in distribution of mutual funds and SIFs possess the requisite information about these products.
Providing information about the recently introduced revised framework for the categorisation of mutual fund schemes introduces Life Cycle Funds, he said that it can support more disciplined, goal-based investing over longer time horizons. It is encouraging to note that AMCs are starting to offer this product to investors. “In an environment where social media can amplify eye-catching returns and drive FOMO (fear of missing out), goal-based products such as life cycle funds can help investors remain focused on suitable asset allocation and long-term financial objective,” he highlighted.