The volatile equity markets and growing geopolitical uncertainty have taken a heavy toll on asset management companies with both their revenues and profitability taking a hit on a sequential basis in the March quarter.
However, leading AMCs have managed to post better numbers year-on-year largely due to the steady inflows.
Going ahead, analysts expect the cut in total expense ratio to impact margins by 3-4 basis points even as funds houses are negotiating with intermediaries to pass on the incremental cost.
The net profit of all the listed fund houses fell quarter-on-quarter. UTI AMC registered a loss of ₹67 crore in the March quarter against profit of ₹121 crore in the December quarter. Nippon AMC saw the lowest fall of five per cent at ₹384 crore ( ₹404 crore). The rupee depreciation also had its impact on the overseas operations and the sharp fall in overall equity markets all impacted earning from passive funds.
On a year-on-year basis, except for Nippon MF and ICICI MF all the fund houses reported a drop in March quarter net profit. Canara Robeco and HDFC AMC registered lowest fall in net profit by 0.2 per cent and 2.4 per cent at ₹41 crore and ₹623 crore.
Shweta Rajani Head- Mutual funds, Anand Rathi Wealth said despite market condition in March quarter the top AMC companies have delivered very strong results for FY’26 with revenues growing much faster than costs.
The cut in TER is unlikely to have big impact in the near term as the overall industry is growing rapidly with monthly SIP inflows above ₹30,000 crore and more investors from smaller cities entering mutual funds, she said.
However, cut in TER will be a bigger challenge for smaller AMCs without scale advantage or bargaining power on cost, while the larger AMCs may feel pressure on margins rather than a threat to overall profitability, she added.
Revenue of Nippon MF and Canara Robeco MF were up 5 per cent and 4 per cent q-o-q at ₹739 crore and ₹114 crore against ₹705 crore and ₹110 crore while that of ICICI AMC was flat at ₹1,517 crore. Other MF houses such as Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC and HDFC AMC reported flattish revenue q-on-q while UTI AMC reported a fall of 25 per cent in revenue as it registered a net gain on fair value changes of ₹107 crore in the December quarter.
However, y-o-y all the fund houses reported 7 to 30 per cent rise in revenue.
Rajesh Singla CEO & Fund Manager Alpha AMC said the structural SIP inflows crossing ₹65 lakh crore in FY26 will give AMCs a durable revenue base that does not rely entirely on market returns to grow.
More than the TER cut, the near term equity markets movements are crucial as AMC revenues are leveraged to AUM and AUM is leveraged to equity market levels and SIP continuity, he said.
Published on May 1, 2026