Mutual fund assets: Gujarat only state with 3 cities in Top 15

AHMEDABAD: Despite troughs and crests, retail investors in Gujarat still have faith in mutual fund (MF) investments.
Gujarat is the only Indian state with three cities in the country’s Top 15 in terms of assets under management (AUM) in mutual funds.
As of September 30 this year, Ahmedabad (6th), Vadodara (9th) and Surat (12th) accounted for 80% of the assets under management from Gujarat, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
Mutual fund assets of Gujarat investors were valued at Rs 2.27 lakh crore in September, of which these three cities account for Rs 1.83 lakh crore.
Last year, Ahmedabad pipped Chennai to the sixth rank. Vadodara’s rank also improved from 10th to 9th this quarter and Surat inched up from 12 to 11.
A city-based mutual funds consultant said, “Most of the investment here is driven by equity MFs. Since July last year, equity markets have been doing fairly well and despite recent volatility, investors’ faith in the Indian equity markets has remained strong due to high returns. No other state has three cities in the top 15 in India. This is because of high levels of retail investor participation.”
“Gujaratis are typically savvy in equity investing and have a greater risk appetite. Earlier, this was seen only in Ahmedabad. Other cities are fast catching up. This is unlike Delhi or Maharashtra, where assets under management is driven by institutional investors and wealth and investors are concentrated in one city,” the consultant added. MF advisors also highlighted that investment levels rose sharply after demonetization. “After 2016, a lot of money came into formal channels. This over the years grew with greater awareness among investors and after the Covid-19 pandemic the inclination to save was greater,” said a city-based mutual funds advisor.