NJ India, SBI took lion's share of mutual fund commissions in FY21

The data from Amfi shows NJ India Invest maintained top spot, with gross distribution commission of Rs 874 crore, 12.5 per cent more than Rs 777 crore pocketed in FY20

Mutual fund (MF) distributors received Rs 6,617 crore in commissions from the asset management industry in financial year 2020-21 (FY21), 7.6 per cent up compared to the preceding year.

The data from Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) shows NJ India Invest maintained top spot, with gross distribution commission of Rs 874 crore, 12.5 per cent more than Rs 777 crore pocketed in FY20. State Bank of India (SBI) took the second spot, followed by Axis Bank and HDFC Bank. The top 10 got gross commissions of Rs 3,233 crore in FY21, which accounted for over 48 per cent of the overall commission paid by the industry.

Over the last four years, the commission paid to the distributors has been consistently coming down after the markets regulator banned upfront commission and tech-savvy investors took to the direct-investment route. Even several of the fintech platforms offer direct plans to the investors which has reduced the commission paid by the fund houses. In FY18, distributors had received commissions of Rs 8,550 crore, which fell to Rs 7,948 crore in FY19.