Investment Performance of Mutual Funds
August 2, 2025: Top Passive Equity Funds in India
In the dynamic world of investment, passive equity funds have been making waves in India. Here's a roundup of some of the top-performing passive equity funds as of August 2, 2025.
For broad market large-cap exposure, UTI and ICICI Prudential's Nifty Next 50 and Nifty 50 index funds are leading the pack. The UTI Nifty Next 50 Index Fund boasts a 5-year CAGR of 20.90%, while ICICI Prudential's counterpart follows closely with a 5-year CAGR of 20.78%. Other notable large-cap index funds include the UTI Nifty 50 Index Fund, HDFC Nifty 50 Index Fund, and SBI Nifty Index Fund, all with impressive 5-year CAGRs.
ETFs, another form of passive vehicles, are also popular. The SBI Nifty 50 ETF, Motilal Oswal Nifty 50 ETF, and Invesco India Nifty 50 ETF are among the top choices.
For those seeking midcap or smallcap exposure, Aditya Birla Sun Life and ICICI Prudential offer highly rated index funds. The Aditya Birla Sun Life Nifty Midcap 150 Index Fund and ICICI Prudential Nifty Smallcap 250 Index Fund have 3-year returns of 21.22% and 19.67%, respectively.
It's important to note that this list focuses on passive equity funds tracking major Indian indices and excludes active funds and cash funds. The tracking errors for these funds range from 13.7% to 0%.
The top-rated passive funds are assigned a five-star rating, while the lower-performing funds receive a one-star rating. The expense ratios for these funds vary, with regular plans ranging from 0.2% to 1.9% and direct plans from 0.4% to 0.6%.
In addition to equity funds, there are several passive funds offering exposure to gold, silver, banks, and PSUs. The HDFC Gold ETF, ICICI Prudential Silver ETF, Nippon India ETF Gold BeES, Nippon India Silver ETF, and several banking and PSU funds are examples of these.
There are also several equity contrarian funds listed, such as Invesco India Contra Fund, Kotak Contra Fund, and SBI Contra Fund.
The 10-year CAGR for these passive funds ranges from 11.6% to 37.3%. The Sortino Ratios for equity contrarian funds range from 15.3% to 1.21%.
As always, it's crucial to do thorough research and consider your investment goals and risk tolerance before making any investment decisions.
[1] Enrich Money, July 3, 2025 [2] Angel One, July 29, 2025 [3] Groww, Jan 2025 data [4] Angel One, July 2025
- In the realm of banking and finance, several passive funds offer exposure to the banking sector, such as the HDFC Bank ETF, ICICI Prudential Bank ETF, and Axis Bank ETF.
- For those interested in investing in the infrastructure sector, there are index funds like the Nifty Infrastructure Index Fund and the BSE India Infrastructure Index Fund available.
- In the world of IT and finance, some passive equity funds offer diversified exposure, like the Nifty IT Index Fund and the Nifty Finance Index Fund, which can be a valuable addition to one's investment portfolio.
