India's AIF Market Shifts to 'Outcome Accountability' as Alpha Holds

• India's Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) market is moving from capital formation to performance accountability, driven by new benchmarking data.
• The CRISIL–Oister report tracks 170 Category I and II AIF schemes, showing a pooled IRR of 24.02% against BSE Sensex TRI's 15.3%, an 8.7% alpha.
• Dispersion across managers is significant, with top 50% of funds generating 13.6% alpha, highlighting the importance of manager selection.
• Investors are increasingly focusing on distributions and realised cashflows (DPI) over headline IRRs, with secondaries emerging as a key liquidity channel.
• Domestic capital participation in AIFs has risen to 55%, reflecting increased regulatory clarity and confidence in India's innovation economy.