March saw record SIP contributions of ₹32,087 crore and a 101% stoppage ratio, both as per AMFI data.
Nifty 50 fell 11.3% in March 2026, its sharpest monthly fall since March 2020. Foreign investors simultaneously pulled ₹117,775 crore from equities. The popular reading was that domestic SIP money held its nerve. True, but one number needs more context.
→ AmFi’s March data recorded ₹32,087 crore in SIP contributions, the highest monthly figure until then.
→ Yet 53.38 lakh SIPs were discontinued or completed, against 52.82 lakh new registrations, producing a stoppage ratio of roughly 101%.
The wording matters: “discontinued or tenure completed.” That number combines SIPs investors stopped with SIPs that simply reached the end of their tenure.
The published figure does not separate the two. So a 101% ratio cannot, by itself, tell us investors panicked.
The money flows tell a clearer story.
📍Equity mutual funds received ₹40,450 crore, more than 1.5x February’s inflow.
📍Domestic institutional investors bought roughly ₹1.43 lakh crore of equities in March, while foreign investors sold roughly ₹1.18 lakh crore.
After 3 decades in markets, one rule still holds for me: Before a number tells you what investors felt, check what that number actually measures.
Is 101% really panic, or just a misleading mix of two outcomes?
(Views are for educational and informational purposes only and are not investment advice.)
