A week after flagging a brutal September collapse, PMS flows roar back in October with an 18x surge

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India’s Portfolio Management Services (PMS) industry saw one of its sharpest monthly reversals of FY26 in October, with net inflows soaring to Rs 22,011 crore, a dramatic turnaround from the Rs 1,139 crore reported in September. The rebound — an 18x jump — came just a week after APMI’s September report highlighted the steepest slowdown of the fiscal year.

Unlike September’s AUM high that was inflated by market gains, October’s recovery was decisively flow-led, marking a return of conviction-led deployments by wealthy investors.

The improvement was driven almost entirely by discretionary portfolios, where net inflows rose to Rs 36,493 crore, supported by an 89% spike in fresh inflows and an 18% drop in redemptions. Even discretionary ex-EPFO flows, a purer measure of HNI sentiment, nearly doubled from the previous month to Rs 12,287 crore, underscoring that domestic investors who stepped aside in September came back aggressively in October.

Total PMS AUM grew 1.3% month-on-month to Rs 41 lakh crore, a modest rise that emphasises how October’s momentum stemmed from real money rather than mark-to-market optics.

Flows outside the PF/EPFO bucket also stabilised meaningfully, with non-PF/EPFO assets rising 1.8%, driven by a 2.6% increase in discretionary books. Corporate AUM, which had fallen 6% in September, inched up 1%, while non-resident AUM climbed 4%, reversing two months of weakness.

Client additions, however, remained soft: PMS platforms added just 1,257 accounts, a 1% rise, signalling that the October surge came from existing investors re-deploying capital, not new investors entering the system.

Asset mix trends also reflected a clear risk-on pivot. Derivatives AUM jumped 56.1% in October, reversing the 25% fall recorded in September. Equity AUM rose 3.8%, led by listed holdings, even as unlisted equity contracted marginally for a second month. Plain debt and mutual fund allocations grew 1.1% and 2.6%, respectively, consistent with reduced redemptions across discretionary books.

Despite the October bounce, the September–October pattern shows HNI behaviour has become increasingly tactical. September saw investors lock in profits amid stretched valuations and global volatility; October saw them re-enter as markets rallied and inflation softened. With PMS net inflows for FY26 now at Rs 91,070 crore, the industry enters the second half of the fiscal on firmer footing — but with data suggesting that flows are becoming more momentum-sensitive than in previous years.

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