India’s economy is growing. Corporate earnings are growing. And yet foreign portfolio investors have withdrawn more than US$30 billion from Indian equities in 2026.
So what exactly are this class of investors telling us?
In this episode of Capital Calculus hosted on StratNewsGlobal.Tech, Anil Padmanabhan spoke to value investor Sanjay Bakshi about the apparent contradiction between India’s economic performance and the behaviour of foreign capital.
Sanjay’s answer is deliberately contrarian: don’t focus too much on what FPIs are doing. Focus on the businesses.
For a long-term investor, Sanjay argues, what ultimately matters is the growth and quality of corporate earnings, competitive advantage, balance-sheet strength and, crucially, the price you pay.
The bigger question for India is not whether FPIs will return.
It is whether India can build a deeper pool of businesses capable of converting economic growth into productivity, competitive advantage and sustainable returns on capital.
Because, ultimately, investors don’t invest in India’s potential.
They invest in companies’ ability to deliver.
