The MF industry has added 51,002 new MF distributors last year against 47,297 in 2024, an increase of eight per cent. Overall, the MF industry has 3.31 lakh AMFI Registration Number (ARNs) and EUIN (Employee Unique Identification Number) holders.
Of these, individual MFDs were 1.75 lakh, making up about 53 per cent of the total ARN. About 45 per cent of individual MFDs are located in B30 (beyond top 30) cities.
The number of new SIP registered has hit all-time of 74.11 lakh last month with inflows touching ₹30,002 crore.
Roughly 94 per cent of life insurance portfolios consist of savings-oriented, rather than pure protection products.
The term and life insurance sector has lost its sheen after the Government made income up to ₹11.50 lakh tax-free.
Also , the adoption of new tax regime has been much faster as it offer lower tax rate without any set-off on specific investments.
To start with, insurance agents have to clear the NISM Series V-A certification and obtain an ARN. Many online financial services platforms are also simplifying insurance agents transition by assisting with the certification, regulatory onboarding and providing technology infrastructure.
Aditya Agarwal, Co-founder of Wealthy.in, a wealth management platform for MF distributors said with LIC alone serving over 40 crore customers and India’s insurance ecosystem with nearly 30 lakh agents, a gradual shift toward MF distribution is already visible and catching pace.
“Insurance agents often build trusted relationships with clients over decades. As clients’ financial needs grow beyond protection to wealth creation, they naturally turn to the same advisor for guidance to invest their surplus savings or proceeds from maturing policies,” he said.
Wealthy onboards nearly 350 distributors every month. Of this, about 40 per cent of the new MF distributors are with insurance background, he added.
After spending nearly three decades as an insurance agent, Kalidassan Malarvizhi decided to expand his offerings last year as client preferences began to shift.
“Many of my customers started asking for investment options beyond insurance, especially MFs and equities,” he said.
Today, his business mix reflects this diversification, with about 40 per cent in insurance, 30 per cent in MFs and about 20 per cent in stocks.
While commissions from MFs are lower compared to insurance products, Kalidassan said the move has helped him build deeper relationships with clients by providing a broader financial planning approach.
Sumit Kumar Agarwalla, founder of Bhubaneswar-based Easy2BeWealthy, transitioned into MF distribution about 18 months ago after working in the financial services sector.
“Insurance is an excellent protection tool, but if someone wants to build a corpus and grow their wealth, MFs become essential,” he said.
“Rising investor awareness and the rapid growth of the MF industry are prompting advisors to broaden their offerings,” said Agarwalla.
Published on March 7, 2026