·         The mutual fund industry continues to witness strong structural traction, underpinned by the robust rally at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), ample market liquidity, and rising investor penetration. As of Jan’26, industry AUMs surged to PKR 4.48 trillion, reflecting a solid 11.52% YoY expansion, despite a marginal 0.49% MoM dip. The underlying trend remains constructive, with 16 out of 21 listed AMCs posting AUM growth during the month  signaling broad based participation, improving risk appetite, and sustained confidence in professionally managed investment vehicles.

·         Based on AMC wise data Al Meezan Investment Management Limited retained its industry leadership in Jan’26 with AUMs of PKR 658bn, reinforcing its dominant franchise strength, sustained investor confidence, and consistent inflow momentum across diversified mandates.

·         Growth momentum broadened beyond the market leader, with JS Investments Limited posting a strong growth of +11.37% MoM in AUM, while NBP Fund Management Limited delivered a solid +8.69% MoM increase highlighting accelerating traction among both established and mid-tier AMCs.

·         Overall, Jan’26 data signals a structurally expanding industry, marked by rising inflows, competitive performance dispersion, and increasing investor diversification across fund managers — reinforcing a constructive outlook for sustained AUM growth ahead.

·         The top five fund categories by absolute AUM growth in Jan’26 provide a clear and insightful snapshot of evolving investor preferences and risk appetites.

·         Shariah Compliant Income funds emerged as the strongest contributor, recording a substantial increase of PKR81.4bn highlighting the growing market of Islamic financial instruments within the broader investment landscape.

·         Following closely, Conventional Income funds attracted PKR 57.6bn in net inflows. The parallel growth in both conventional and Shariah-compliant liquidity funds indicates that investors across segments are prioritizing safety, flexibility, and low-risk returns, while also aligning investments with faith-based principles where applicable.

·         Equity and Shariah-compliant equity funds recorded strong inflows of PKR42.8bn and PKR 23.1bn in Jan’26, respectively, as the policy rate cut to 10.5% by the SBP boosted risk appetite, driving Equity AUMs contribution up to 17.03% from 15.27% (+1.76% MoM), reflecting a clear shift toward equities amid improving market sentiment.

·         The most striking performance was observed in the VPS-Debt category, which registered a remarkable growth of 102.3%MoM, translating into PKR11.3bn.

Courtesy- AHCML Research