Retail investors are flocking to debt mutual funds big time. At a time when investment in equities has lost all passion among investors, they are happy making 7-10% return.
Since, Indian stock markets touched their lows in March, 2009 post Lehman Crisis, the pure debt segment of fund industry has seen retail folios in the category rising more than double till March this year.
As on March, 2009, total number of pure retail folios (excluding HNIs) in debt category stood at 25.5 million. This jumped to 51.5 million by the end of FY13 - a whopping rise of 101%.
Industry executives say that assets from equities have continuously been shifting to debt and fresh money is also heading towards debt schemes.
This is clear from the asset under management (AUM) of retail debt. In last four years, retail debt AUM more than trebled from Rs 8,070 crore in March, 2009 to Rs 28,781 crore - capturing 7.25% of the overall debt assets which earlier stood merely at 4%.
Over the last five years, the annualised return from debt schemes stood between 7 and 9%.
| March 31, 2009 | 31 March, 2013 | |
| No of folios | 25,55,270 | 51,52, 042 |
| Retail debt AUM | Rs 8,070 crore | Rs 28, 781 cr |
| % of debt AUM | 4.09 | 7.25 |
| Source: Amfi | ||
