MF assets rise to record-high of Rs 10.6 lakh crore in Q2

Improved market sentiments helped mutual funds' assets under management (AUM) soar 7.2 per cent to a record-high of Rs 10.6 lakh crore in the second quarter of the current fiscal.
The country's 45 fund houses together had an average AUM of Rs 10.58 lakh crore during July-September quarter of 2014-15, up from Rs 9.87 lakh crore in the preceding three months, thus, registering a gain of over Rs 71,000 crore, or 7.2 per cent, says the latest data available with Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).
The AUMs had crossed Rs 10 lakh crore-mark for the first time in May, when the markets went up after the General Elections result.

Industry experts said the quarterly rise in AUM is largely on account of gains in equity markets. Besides, retail participation in equity schemes has increased significantly during the recent months.
HDFC Mutual Fund (MF) has retained its top position with an average AUM of Rs 1.41 lakh crore, a surge in asset base by about nine per cent, while ICICI Prudential MF saw its asset base grow by eight per cent to Rs 1.27 lakh crore during the period.
In the top league, HDFC MF and ICICI Pru are followed by Reliance MF (Rs 1.22 lakh crore) Birla Sunlife (Rs 1.02 lakh crore) and UTI MF (Rs 83,250 crore) in terms of average AUM in the first quarter of 2014-15.

Mutual fund is an investment vehicle that is made up of a pool of funds collected from many investors for the purpose of investing in securities such as stocks, bonds, money market instruments and similar assets.