Foreign Investment in Indian Mutual Funds Hits Record High in 2025
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released results of its 2024–25 Survey of Foreign Liabilities and Assets of Mutual Funds (MFs) and their Asset Management Companies (AMCs).
The findings show a sharp rise in foreign liabilities of MFs—driven by higher non-resident holdings of MF units—even as overseas assets moderated on lower foreign equity exposure.
Key takeaways
- MF foreign liabilities rose 19.9% to US$ 30.5 billion (₹2,61,057 crore) as of March 2025, mainly due to more units held by non-residents.
- MF overseas assets fell 5.6% to US$ 8.3 billion (₹71,265 crore); net foreign liabilities widened to US$ 22.2 billion.
- UAE, USA, UK, and Singapore accounted for the largest shares of non-resident unit holdings (market value).
- Over 95% of MF overseas equity exposure remained concentrated in the USA, Luxembourg, and Ireland.
- AMC foreign liabilities increased 16.8% to US$ 7.5 billion, led by higher FDI; Japan, Canada, and the UK together made up over 83% of FDI in AMCs.
Table 1: Mutual Funds – Foreign Liabilities and Assets
| Item | End-March 2024 (R) | End-March 2025 (P) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ₹ crore | US$ million | ₹ crore | US$ million | |
| Foreign Liabilities | 2,12,120 | 25,442 | 2,61,057 | 30,504 |
| (a) Market Value of Units | 2,11,747 | 25,397 | 2,60,546 | 30,444 |
| (b) Other Foreign Liabilities | 373 | 45 | 511 | 60 |
| Foreign Assets | 73,518 | 8,818 | 71,265 | 8,328 |
| (a) Equity Securities | 71,095 | 8,527 | 69,086 | 8,073 |
| (b) Debt Securities | – | – | – | – |
| (c) Other Foreign Assets | 2,423 | 291 | 2,179 | 255 |
| Net Liabilities | 1,38,602 | 16,624 | 1,89,792 | 22,176 |
| Foreign Liabilities in Units at Face Value | 49,777 | 5,970 | 63,112 | 7,374 |
Notes: (i) US$ values use RBI end-March reference rate; (ii) Liabilities/assets at market prices unless stated; (iii) “–” denotes nil/negligible; (iv) R=Revised, P=Provisional.
Table 3: Foreign Liabilities in Units of MFs at Market Value – Major Countries (₹ crore)
| Country | End-Mar 2024 (R) | End-Mar 2025 (P) | % Share in 2025 | Annual Variation (Amount) | Annual Variation (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Arab Emirates | 41,041 | 52,549 | 20.2 | 11,508 | 28.0 |
| United States of America | 25,721 | 31,903 | 12.2 | 6,182 | 24.0 |
| United Kingdom | 19,910 | 24,649 | 9.5 | 4,739 | 23.8 |
| Singapore | 16,561 | 19,523 | 7.5 | 2,962 | 17.9 |
| Qatar | 5,728 | 7,342 | 2.8 | 1,614 | 28.2 |
| Oman | 5,447 | 6,583 | 2.5 | 1,136 | 20.9 |
| Australia | 3,892 | 5,483 | 2.1 | 1,591 | 40.9 |
| Kuwait | 4,142 | 5,377 | 2.1 | 1,235 | 29.8 |
| Saudi Arabia | 3,940 | 4,682 | 1.8 | 742 | 18.8 |
| Hong Kong | 3,541 | 4,010 | 1.5 | 469 | 13.2 |
| Canada | 2,619 | 3,717 | 1.4 | 1,098 | 41.9 |
| Others* | 79,205 | 94,728 | 36.4 | 15,523 | 19.6 |
| of which: India | 45,848 | 51,672 | 19.8 | 5,824 | 12.7 |
| Total | 2,11,747 | 2,60,546 | 100.0 | 48,799 | 23.0 |
*“Others” includes NRIs who use their Indian permanent address.
Where do Indian MFs invest overseas?
Overseas equity holdings remained concentrated in a few markets: the USA (64.4% share), Luxembourg (19.7%), and Ireland (11.0%).
While exposure to Hong Kong and Canada rose, allocations to the UK, Taiwan, Japan, and the Cayman Islands softened year-on-year.
Table 6: Foreign Direct Investment in AMCs (₹ crore)
| Country | End-Mar 2024 (R) | End-Mar 2025 (P) | % Share in 2025 | Variation (Amount) | Variation (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 21,719 | 26,663 | 60.0 | 4,944 | 22.8 |
| Canada | 3,956 | 5,503 | 12.4 | 1,547 | 39.1 |
| United Kingdom | 3,787 | 4,801 | 10.8 | 1,014 | 26.8 |
| France | 2,469 | 3,015 | 6.8 | 546 | 22.1 |
| Mauritius | 2,071 | 2,533 | 5.7 | 462 | 22.3 |
| Singapore | 770 | 942 | 2.1 | 172 | 22.3 |
| Hong Kong | 394 | 473 | 1.0 | 79 | 20.1 |
| Netherlands | 223 | 294 | 0.7 | 71 | 31.8 |
| United States of America | 207 | 241 | 0.5 | 34 | 16.4 |
| Total | 35,596 | 44,465 | 100.0 | 8,869 | 24.9 |
AMCs: Liabilities up on FDI; assets inch up
Overall foreign liabilities of AMCs increased to US$ 7.53 billion (₹64,564 crore) by March 2025, with direct investment at US$ 5.19 billion and portfolio investment at US$ 2.34 billion. Overseas assets of AMCs edged up to US$ 127 million, largely placed in Guernsey, Singapore, and Mauritius.
Source: RBI Press Release “Survey of Foreign Liabilities and Assets of Mutual Funds – 2024–25”, August 18, 2025.
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