New Delhi, Jan 9 (IANS): Monthly systematic investment plans (SIPs) surpassed the Rs 26,000 crore mark for the first time in the month of December, showcasing that small investors continue to rely on mutual funds for long-term investments, as per the data released by the Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI) on Thursday.

The SIP contribution during the last month stood at Rs 26,459 crore compared to 25,320 crore in November.

Along with the SIP, mutual fund (MF) folio also surged to 22.50 crore in December, from 22.02 crore in the previous month.

As per earlier reports, there was a massive 233 per cent growth (year-on-year) in overall net inflows in SIPs in India last year, as the Indian economy remains resilient amid rough geo-political conditions.

According to Ashwini Kumar from credit ratings agency ICRA Analytics, with the structural growth story of the Indian economy remaining intact and India a bright spot in the global economy, the domestic mutual fund industry is expected to witness multi-fold growth in the coming years.

The surge in SIP comes at a time when equity market performance was subdued last month. Both the Sensex and Nifty were down 2.08 per cent and 2.02 per cent in December.

A record 42,76,207 investors joined the Indian stock market in November, according to the National Stock Exchange (NSE) data. In the July-September period this year, a total of 1,60,06,447 (over 1.6 crore) people joined the stock market, as India’s equity markets soared to record highs.

The stock exchange also informed that till December 23 this year, the total number of registered investors stood at 21,02,25,329 (over 21.02 crore).