ET Intelligence Group: The systematic investment plan (SIP) route continues to attract new retail investors amid soaring equity benchmark indices with no signs of exasperation. New SIP accounts opened in February were 2.3 times more than the ones that were closed according to the data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).

The ratio of new and closed accounts was at a 27-month high reflecting strong bullish sentiment among investors. It has consistently risen for the past three months in a row. The one-year average ratio was 1.8. In February, investors opened 49.7 lakh SIP accounts and closed 21.3 lakh taking the net SIP addition to 28.4 lakh which is nearly double that of the one-year average addition.