According to the data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), over 60 per cent of retail investors stayed put in equity mutual funds for more than two years, says a statement from Crisil Research.
Amfi released an age-wise analysis of assets under management (AUM) across investor types and categories for the half year ended September 2012. The analysis showed that out of the Rs 1.4 lakh crore worth of retail investment in equity-oriented mutual funds, Rs 0.85 lakh cr continued for over 24 months. In contrast, high net-worth individuals (HNIs), who invested over Rs 5 lakh, redeemed 60 per cent in less than two years.
| Investor Classification | No of folios Sep'12 | No of folios Mar'12 | Change | % Change |
| Corporates | 3.68 | 4.28 | -0.60 | -13.92 |
| HNIs | 8.94 | 8.15 | 0.79 | 9.67 |
| Retail | 435.50 | 452.07 | -16.57 | -3.67 |
| Others* | 0.04 | 0.03 | 0.01 | 23.00 |
| Total | 448.16 | 464.52 | -16.37 | -3.52 |
Mutual funds lost over 16 lakh folios (3.5 per cent) over the past six months ended September 2012 to end with 448 lakh folios (See Table). Most of the decline was seen in retail folios (especially in the equity category) as these were impacted by volatile market conditions.
Corporates continued to dominate mutual fund AUM with 46 per cent share compared to 43 per cent in March 2012. They had 60 per cent share in the AUM of debt-oriented funds. They were followed by HNIs who had 25 per cent share and retail investors had 23 per cent share. In March 2012, retail investors' share stood at a higher 27 per cent.
Retail investors increased their presence in debt-oriented mutual funds (including gilt and liquid funds) with the number of retail folios rising by 10.5 per cent in the past six months. This can be attributed to investors looking at relatively safer investment options post the volatility in the domestic equity markets in 2011.