Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) ownership in NSE-listed companies declined to 16.71% in September 2025, down from 17.05% in June. The total value of FII holdings fell by Rs 3.38 lakh crore to Rs 74.20 lakh crore, reflecting continued profit booking and a cautious stance amid global market volatility.
Free-Float and Trading Share Decline
The free-float FII share slipped from 34.08% in June to 33.43% in September 2025. Similarly, FIIs’ average share in total market volumes eased slightly to 5.65% from 5.76% in the previous quarter, showing softer foreign participation in daily trading activity.
Number of Active FIIs Falls
The number of FIIs holding over 1% stake in at least one listed firm fell to 326 in September from 346 in March – a 5.8% decline. This indicates reduced activity among large institutional investors, particularly those with concentrated exposure to Indian equities.
Top Foreign Institutional Holders
- Government of Singapore: Rs 1.94 lakh crore across 59 companies (↓16.7% from Rs 2.33 lakh crore, 62 companies)
- Norges Bank: Rs 1.41 lakh crore across 100 companies (broadly unchanged)
- Vanguard: Rs 0.62 lakh crore across 39 companies (↑5.8%)
- Goldman Sachs: Rs 0.51 lakh crore across 57 companies (↑11.2%)
- Capital Group: Rs 0.41 lakh crore across 38 companies (↓46.8%)
Sector-Wise FII Activity
Foreign investors showed mixed trends across sectors. FIIs increased holdings in:
- Consumer Discretionary: 16.15% → 17.36%
- Industrials: 6.95% → 7.13%
Meanwhile, they reduced exposure in:
- Information Technology: 7.96% → 6.69%
- Financials: 31.38% → 30.92%
This shift suggests a move away from overvalued technology stocks towards industrial and consumer-focused sectors benefiting from domestic growth.
Country-Wise FII Breakdown
By total investment value, Singapore-based investors led with 29.14% of total FII holdings, followed by:
- United States: 27.76%
- Norway: 16.70%
However, by number of entities, Mauritius remained on top with 32.72% of the total registered FIIs.
Mutual Funds Narrow Gap with FIIs
The gap between FII and Mutual Fund (MF) ownership continued to narrow. The FII–MF ownership gap reduced to 5.78% in September 2025 – a fall of 71 basis points from the previous quarter. Two years ago, in June 2023, this gap was as high as 10.32%.
Meanwhile, domestic Mutual Fund ownership touched a record 10.93% this quarter, underscoring strong retail and institutional participation in Indian equities despite foreign outflows.
Conclusion
The decline in FII ownership highlights a cautious global sentiment towards emerging markets amid geopolitical uncertainty and shifting monetary policies. However, the consistent rise in domestic institutional investment points to strong underlying confidence in India’s long-term growth story.
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