SIP contributions hit ₹32,087 crore in March, defying a 6.4% Nifty drop and record FPI selling. Experts say the resilience reflects a shift to disciplined long-term investing, with investors using dips to accumulate more units.
Alpha Score of 51 reflects moderate overall profile with strong momentum, weak value, weak quality, moderate sentiment.
Indian retail investors poured a record ₹32,087 crore into systematic investment plans (SIPs) in March. The Nifty dropped 6.4% month-on-month. Foreign portfolio investors sold a record ₹1.18 lakh crore of equities. SIP contributions still rose 7.5% from February, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI).
The March figure pushed the total number of SIP accounts to 9.64 crore. Assets under management in SIPs reached ₹17.12 lakh crore. Annual cumulative SIP investments have now crossed ₹3 lakh crore, AMFI data showed.
Varun Gupta, CEO of Groww Mutual Fund, said the resilience reflects a behavioral shift. “Investors today have become more mature and hold a better understanding of volatility as a feature of equity investing, not a flaw,” he told Mint. The recovery from events like COVID-19 has reinforced the importance of staying invested through market cycles, he added. “SIPs have increasingly become a financial habit rather than a market call.”
Subhendu Harichandan, Executive Director at Anand Rathi Wealth, pointed to AMFI data showing net equity inflows in March and April 2026 surged to ₹40,450 crore and ₹38,440 crore respectively. That is well above the one-year average of ₹30,000 crore. “Investors are no longer getting worried by volatility but are instead using market corrections to increase their investments,” he said. Harichandan noted that Nifty 50 earnings are expected to grow 12% in FY27 and 14% in FY28. Mid-cap earnings are expected to grow 18% and 16% over the same periods. Small-cap earnings are expected to grow 20% and 18%. “Reasonable valuations combined with healthy earnings growth provide a strong foundation for long-term wealth creation,” he added.
Sriram BKR, Senior Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, attributed the optimism to “the increasing adoption of individuals to save their income systematically, better awareness on goal planning, and the ease of investing with online platforms.” He noted that the broader Nifty-500 index rose 22.6% CAGR from January 2020 to September 2024. Even after corrections, the CAGR stood at 15.2% as of May 2026. That performance attracted millennials and young investors, he said.
Nehal Meshram, Senior Analyst at Morningstar Research Investment India, said a steady shift from physical assets like gold and real estate to financial assets has increased mutual fund participation. “The automated nature of SIPs removes the need to time the market and reduces emotional decision-making,” she said. Meshram added that past recoveries, especially after events like COVID-19, have strengthened investor trust in staying the course.
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