NFOs garner ₹3,638 crore inflows in October with 82% investments in four equity schemes: Who takes the lead?

After these, funds investing overseas i.e. Aditya Birla Sun Life Treasury 1-3 year bond ETFs fund of Fund and Aditya Birla Sun Life Treasury 3-10 year bond ETFs fund of Fund attracted inflows of ₹195 crore, signalling investors' inclination towards diversifying their portfolios beyond domestic markets. The Bandhan Retirement Fund secured ₹133 crore in mobilisation, indicating a growing interest in long-term retirement planning solutions.

Non-equity categories such as other ETFs (Mirae Asset Nifty IT ETF, Mirae Asset Nifty 200 Alpha 30 ETF and SBI Nifty 1D Rate ETF) received ₹151 crore. The index fund category, with Groww Nifty Total Market Index Fund and Kotak nifty G-Sec July 2033 Index Fund, saw inflows of ₹71 crore.

Notably, Groww Nifty Total Market Index Fund was the first offering from Groww Mutual Fund and also India's first Total Market Index fund.

WhiteOak Capital Balanced Hybrid Fund, under hybrid schemes, garnered inflows of ₹66 crore in October. Lastly, Helios Overnight Fund, the first fund from Helios Mutual Fund, received inflows of ₹26 crore.

Experts attribute the surge in investor confidence to a strategic blend of sectoral investments, thematic funds, and an increasing appetite for global exposure. Mukesh Kochar, National Head of Wealth at AUM Capital, noted, "Small-cap and mid-cap, along with thematic & multi-cap and flexi-cap funds, find attraction as investors use the correction in October as an opportunity to add. Apart from this, decent corporate earnings also prompted investors to be positive on the market."

According to Viraj Gandhi, CEO of Samco MF, India has proven to be one of the most resilient markets globally in recent months despite heavy selling from Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs).

"This was despite a weak month in terms of performance with the Nifty small cap 250 index falling by over 3% and Nifty Midcap 150 index falling by over 3.5%, the inflows in these categories were colossal," he commented.

The diverse range of funds launched in October caters to the evolving needs of investors, offering opportunities for both growth and stability in a dynamically changing market landscape. As investors continue to seek a balance between risk and reward, NFOs provide a gateway to a wide array of investment avenues.

However, it's important to note that while these NFOs offer diverse opportunities, they also come with varying degrees of risk. Investors should carefully evaluate their financial goals and risk tolerance before choosing to invest in any of these funds.

Experts say that NFO could make sense only when the fund offers something unique that is not available in the market. Additionally, investors can look at the objective and the motive behind the new fund offer. Also, returns of other funds in that category should be checked.