Mutual Fund Industry Poised to Play Pivotal Role in India’s Journey to Viksit Bharat: Shri Amarjeet Singh
New Delhi, 3 July, 2026: Mr. Amarjeet Singh, Whole Time Member, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), today said the mutual fund (MF) industry has emerged as an important force in India’s financial markets, enabling households to participate in long-term wealth creation, providing stable and patient domestic capital for the country’s growth, and playing an increasingly significant stewardship role as a shareholder in listed companies. Addressing ASSOCHAM’s 17th Mutual Fund Summit on the theme “Capitalizing on India’s Economic Ascent for Viksit Bharat,” as Chief Guest.
Mr. Singh noted that while the mutual fund industry has made substantial progress, millions of Indian households are yet to invest in mutual funds, and reaching them will require innovation in product design, distribution, and investor communication, alongside a steadfast commitment to investor protection. He expressed confidence that the collective effort of regulators, industry participants, distributors, investor associations, and educational institutions can build an investment ecosystem aligned with the aspirations of Viksit Bharat.
The summit was attended by Mr. S K Jindal, Chairman, National Council on Commodity Markets & Investments, ASSOCHAM and Chairman, Jindal Exports & Imports; Mr. Lav Chaturvedi, Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM and ED & CEO, IndusInd Securities Limited; Mr. Sandeep Bhardwaj, Co-Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM and MD & CEO, Paytm Money Limited; Mr. Jaiprakash Gupta, Co-Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM and Founder, Dhan; Mr. Sanjay Agarwal, Senior Director, BFSI, CareEdge Ratings; Mr. Sameer Patil, Chief Business Officer, National Securities Depository Limited, along with senior regulators, industry leaders, distributors, and market experts.
Mr. Amarjeet Singh, Whole Time Member, SEBI, said: “It is heartening to note that the MF industry in India is an important force in our financial markets today and is shaping up nicely on three important dimensions. First, it is enabling households to participate in long-term wealth creation in a transparent and cost-efficient manner. Second, it provides stable and patient domestic capital for India’s growth. Third, it plays a significant stewardship role as an increasingly important shareholder in listed companies. There is scope for doing more on these three fronts in the journey towards Viksit Bharat.”
“We have made substantial progress, but the opportunity ahead remains considerable millions of Indian households are yet to invest in mutual funds. Reaching them will require innovation in product design, distribution, and investor communication, alongside a steadfast commitment to investor protection, because trust, once lost, is very difficult to rebuild. I am confident that through the collective effort of all stakeholders regulators, industry participants, distributors, investor associations, and educational institutions — we can build an investment ecosystem that is aligned with the aspirations of a Viksit Bharat. Together, we can make mutual fund investing not a privilege of the few, but a foundation of the many.”
Delivering the welcome address, Mr. S K Jindal, Chairman, National Council on Commodity Markets & Investments, ASSOCHAM & Chairman, Jindal Exports & Imports, said: “We meet at a defining moment in India’s economic history, a time when the world increasingly looks at India not merely as a fast-growing economy, but as a trusted engine of global growth, innovation, and opportunity. The vision of Viksit Bharat is no longer a distant aspiration — it is a national mission that calls upon every institution, every industry, and every citizen to contribute meaningfully. The financial sector, and particularly the mutual fund industry, has a pivotal role in this journey. A strong economy requires strong capital formation — disciplined savings, efficient allocation of capital, and broad-based participation in wealth creation. Mutual funds perform this vital function by connecting the savings of millions of households with the productive enterprises that drive economic growth, thereby creating wealth for investors while helping finance India’s development.”
In his welcome address, Mr. Lav Chaturvedi, Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM & ED & CEO, IndusInd Securities Limited, said: “As we in India are very fond of gold and real estate, it is the power of the mutual fund industry that has finally driven the shift of money out of hard assets towards financialization and not just into low-return assets like fixed deposits, but into mutual funds. The ratio of mutual fund assets to fixed deposits was around 10 to 12 percent up until ten years ago; it has since gone up three-fold to around 33 percent today, channelizing retail money into capital formation via mutual funds and into relatively higher, sustainable returns. It is something which is incredible.”
Speaking at the summit, Mr. Sandeep Bhardwaj, Co-Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM & MD & CEO, Paytm Money Limited, said: “The mutual fund industry sits at the heart of India’s economic transformation. However, our journey is far from complete. Despite remarkable growth, mutual fund penetration in India remains modest, and compared with developed markets, a large majority of Indian households are still outside the formal investment ecosystem. That tells us our biggest opportunity is not increasing market share, but increasing market participation. The responsibility for bringing in the next 100 million investors belongs to all of us — regulators, asset managers, distributors, fintechs, exchanges, and market infrastructure institutions. As India progresses towards becoming a developed nation, capital markets and mutual funds will play an increasingly important role in mobilizing household savings into productive investments that fuel entrepreneurship, infrastructure, innovation, and economic growth.”
Addressing the summit, Mr. Jayprakash Gupta, Co-Chairman, National Council on Capital Market, ASSOCHAM & Founder, Dhan, said: “India has always been a savings-first country. The challenge now is enabling Indians to convert their savings into ownership — ownership of businesses, of innovation, of growth, and of India’s future — and this is only possible through capital markets and the mutual fund industry. For years, investing in India was seen as complex, with too many products, too much jargon, and too much dependence on timing. But in recent years, technology has reduced that friction, information has become democratized, investors have become smarter, and the aspiration of the individual investor is no longer restricted to domestic participation alone — they also want to go global.”
The summit featured three thematic panel discussions — Regulatory Landscape and Market Outlook: Navigating Market Volatility and Economic Indicators; Investment and Distribution Strategies: The Road Ahead in a Dynamic Market; and Leveraging Technology & Fintech Disruption: Innovations, Opportunities, Challenges and Investor Education. Senior regulators, asset managers, distributors, and technology and fintech experts deliberated on regulatory reforms and TER norms, investment and distribution strategies for deeper financial inclusion, and the role of AI, blockchain, and digital platforms in expanding investor participation and safeguarding investor interests.
The summit also marked the launch of ASSOCHAM’s knowledge report, prepared in association with CareEdge Ratings.
Delivering the Vote of Thanks, Mr. S C Aggarwal, Member, Managing Committee, ASSOCHAM & CMD, SMC Group, thanked the Chief Guest Mr. Amarjeet Singh, the welcome address speakers, panelists, delegates, and partners for their participation. He reaffirmed ASSOCHAM’s commitment to working closely with regulators and industry through policy advocacy, knowledge partnerships, and industry collaboration to strengthen India’s mutual fund ecosystem and contribute to the vision of Viksit Bharat.
