Over 1 Lakh Postmen To Be Trained as Mutual Fund Distributors as India Post and AMFI Join Hands To Boost MF Access

Moneylife Digital Team 25 August 2025

Investor Interest

In a major push to financial inclusion, the department of posts (DoP) has signed a landmark agreement with the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) to bring mutual fund services to citizens through India Post’s extensive network of more than 164,000 post-offices. The agreement, signed last week during AMFI’s 30th Foundation Day in Mumbai, is expected to significantly widen access to mutual funds in rural and semi-urban India.

The MoU (memorandum of understanding ) was formally signed by Manisha Bansal Badal, general manager for business development of India Posts and VN Chalasani, chief executive officer (CEO) of AMFI, in the presence of SEBI chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey.

Under the agreement, DoP staff will serve as mutual fund distributors, enabling individuals in smaller towns and villages—where financial literacy and access to structured investment products remain limited—to participate in capital markets.

According to an official release from India Post, the three-year MoU (valid until 21 August 2028) not only authorises post offices to collect documents and carry out know-your-customer (KYC) verification for mutual fund investors but also establishes robust safeguards for data protection and operational integrity.

The initiative, India Post says, would “set a new benchmark for financial services outreach and strengthen the trust citizens already place in the postal network.”

Complementing the agreement, AMFI announced a large-scale training initiative aimed at transforming more than 100,000 postmen into certified mutual fund distributors. The programme will be rolled out initially in Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Meghalaya, with at least 10 distributors per district expected by the end of this year and a target of doubling that to 20 per district next year. The plan includes onboarding 20,000 new distributors in the first year, with a 'train-the-trainers' model developed in collaboration with academic institutions to ensure scalability.

“This collaboration is a milestone in our vision of fostering a professional and investor-friendly mutual fund ecosystem across India,” AMFI says in its statement, adding that the trust and reach of India Post would be pivotal in deepening investor penetration beyond urban centres.

For India Post, the agreement aligns with its ongoing efforts to leverage its vast grassroots network for financial inclusion. Officials emphasised that the postal service’s credibility in rural households would be crucial in bridging the gap between formal financial markets and underserved populations.

By combining the nationwide reach of the postal network with AMFI’s expertise in mutual funds, policymakers hope to democratise investment opportunities for millions, thereby contributing to wealth creation and financial empowerment across the country.

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