MF's LOOKING TO ATTRACT RETAIL INVESTORS

Having crossed the Rs 10-trillion mark in AUMs for the first time last month, mutual funds are striving hard to see further rise in participation from retail investors, apex industry body AMFI said today. "There has been significant retail participation in equity schemes in the recent months and our effort to reach out to the retail segment and locations beyond Tier 2 and 3 towns has started showing results," Sundeep Sikka, chairman of Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), told PTI on the sidelines of a CII-organised summit. "The rise in retail participation is on the back of more investors opting for systematic investment plans (SIPs)," said Sikka, who is also Chief Executive of Reliance Capital Asset Management. As per AMFI, the AUMs (assets under management) of MF players rose to Rs 10.11 trillion in May from Rs 9.45 trillion in April. There has been a 1 percentage point increase in retail participation from beyond top 15 (B-15) towns with the industry seeing net inflows from these geographies since November (barring March), he added. As per data from registrar Computer Age Management Services, 53 per cent of the about 7,00,000 SIP folios opened in FY'14 came from B-15 towns. This data covers about 60 per cent of the sector size, said Sikka. Reliance Mutual Fund's 100 per cent equity funds have outperformed the benchmark indices in the last six-month period, Sikka said. Also, 99.7 per cent of the 18 equity funds managed by the company have outperformed the corresponding benchmark indices in the past one year, he added. "The performance in the past one year is a result of thorough research and effective stock picking," said Sikka. "We have played successfully on emerging themes like chemicals, building materials, e-commerce and the retail sector, and would continue to work towards creating superior returns for our investors and stakeholders." "If economic reforms continue, the primary market will also grow and help bring in more retail investors to our fold," UTI Asset Management Managing Director Leo Puri.