The year 2025 has been a rollercoaster ride for world markets. Early optimism faded as slow growth, sticky inflation, and volatile commodity prices kept investors nervous.
The US and Europe grapple to keep growth and inflation in balance, while China faces a sustained slowdown in property and exports.
Geopolitical hotspots have also contributed to the volatility, the Russia–Ukraine war, tensions in the Middle East interrupting oil supplies, US–China trade frictions, and the latest US tariffs on Indian goods, have all further disrupted supply chains.
For Indian investors, this means navigating spikes in oil prices, currency swings, and rising inflation, while export-focused sectors face extra uncertainty. Domestic measures, like the recent GST rate cut, could provide some relief and help ease cost pressures for businesses.
At the same time, global structural changes—such as the semiconductor race, growing AI adoption, and the clean energy revolution—are creating clear winners and losers.
While US tech giants and European green energy companies are thriving, many emerging markets are lagging, which means investors focused only on domestic markets risk missing out on global opportunities.
The 2025 lesson is clear: While India continues to grow strongly, overexposure to its markets may leave portfolios vulnerable to local risks such as policy surprises, currency weakness, or sector slowdowns.
For investors wanting to tapping into global growth, international mutual funds offer a smart option.
In this article we’ve picked the top international mutual funds. These funds have been selected for Indian investors based on five-year performance, portfolio strategy, sector and geographic mix, and risk management.
| Scheme Name | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | SD | Sharpe | Sortino |
| ICICI Pru MNC Fund | 8.52 | 15.46 | 23.86 | – | 11.00 | 0.32 | 0.61 |
| Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 FOF | 30.48 | 21.82 | 22.65 | – | 20.36 | 0.39 | 0.78 |
| Edelweiss US Technology Equity FOF | 29.13 | 20.61 | 19.30 | – | 26.15 | 0.35 | 0.68 |
| Benchmark – Nasdaq 100 | 20.32 | 15.50 | 17.62 | 16.70 | 18.69 | 0.30 | 0.57 |
| Nifty MNC – TRI | 8.51 | 15.78 | 17.69 | 12.92 | 13.05 | 0.24 | 0.45 |
Data as of October 03, 2025
(Source: ACE MF)
#1 ICICI Pru MNC Fund
ICICI Pru MNC Fund is oriented towards businesses with solid multinational parentage, sound governance, and durable business models, and hence it’s suited for those seeking quality businesses with a global reach without moving out of India.
The fund focuses on MNCs with robust balance sheets, stable cash flows, and better technology or brand leadership that typically enable them to ride economic down cycles.
During the last 5 years, the fund has given a rolling CAGR of 23.9% (as of August 2025), which proves its sustainability to earn steady returns with relatively less volatility than pure domestic thematic funds.
Its holdings are skewed towards large-cap and quality mid-cap MNCs which gain from Indian consumption growth as well as from their global connections.
As of August 2025, the fund has an asset size of Rs 16.89 bn, with major investments in automobiles (26.5%), FMCG (22.3%) and healthcare (16.9%)—industries where MNCs have typically been strong in the market.
Key holdings are names like, Hindustan Unilever (8.8%), Maruti Suzuki India (8.4%) and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (4.8%), which are defensive bets with support from global parentage and India growth potential.
In a world where trade tensions, tariff changes, and currency fluctuations affect markets, MNC-backed firms tend to offer relative stability on account of their international size and risk management strategies.
#2 Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 FoF
Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 Fund of Fund provides Indian investors with direct exposure to the Nasdaq 100 Index, comprising the 100 largest non-financial stocks listed on the Nasdaq exchange, it invests in – Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 ETF.
The fund will mostly capture the US technology and innovation narrative, gaining exposure to global leaders such as Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, NVIDIA, and Tesla—the leaders in AI, cloud computing, digital transformation, and clean energy.
Since the last 5 years, the Nasdaq 100 has provided a rolling CAGR of 17.62% (as of August 2025), way ahead of most emerging market indices. By performing better than this performance, the FoF has enabled Indian investors to tap the US tech-led rally without having to use overseas trading accounts.
As of August 2025, the fund has assets under management of Rs 56.32 bn, with almost complete exposure to Nasdaq 100 companies, hence it’s a pure play on the growth of US tech firms.
Its sectoral exposure is strongly biased toward technology, communication services, and consumer discretionary sectors that are propelling the world digital economy.
From Indian investors’ perspective, this fund is a strong geographical diversifier, cutting over-reliance on domestic market cycles and accessing global megatrends.
Even though risks of currency volatility (USD-INR) and volatility in the US market still exist, the exposure to innovation-led companies represents a high-quality long-term growth opportunity.
Overall, Motilal Oswal Nasdaq 100 FOF is suitable for those looking to diversify domestic allocations and access global equity.
#3 Edelweiss US Technology Equity FOF
Edelweiss US Technology Equity Fund of Fund gives Indian investors access to the US technology sector by investing in the JPMorgan US Technology Fund.
It gives access to some of the world’s top tech innovators shaping digital transformation, cloud computing, semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), and next-generation software solutions.
In the last 5 years, the US tech space has shown robust performance with industry leaders such as Apple, Microsoft, NVIDIA, Alphabet, and Meta.
By investing in this sector, the FoF has helped Indian investors profit from the world’s most cutting-edge innovation hub without the necessity of investing directly overseas.
As of August 2025, it has assets under management of Rs 32.46 bn, with strong concentration in technology, communication services, and internet companies. The concentrated exposure renders it a pure growth fund, albeit a volatile one relative to diversified international options.
It exposes investors to industry-specific risks like regulatory shifts in the US technology industry and sensitivity to interest rate cycles globally. Returns could be further affected by movements in currencies (USD–INR) that tend to boost returns when the rupee weakens.
Edelweiss US Technology Equity FOF is appropriate for long-term, high-risk investors who desire access to the international technology revolution. It has the potential be a satellite holding in a portfolio to participate in high-growth stories outside India.
Conclusion
When it comes to international investing, there is no single ‘best’ option for everyone. Each fund presents a different window into global opportunities—through multinational corporations, technology-led US indexes, or targeted exposure to the world’s innovation leaders.
What is good for one investor is not necessarily good for another, as risk appetite, time horizon, and expectations for returns differ greatly.
Even though international funds provide diversification, they are not risk-free. The focus on specific sectors like US technology could accentuate volatility since it would enhance the portfolio’s exposure to the sector during times of correction.
A balanced allocation instead of overexposure ensures that international exposure plays a complementary role within an investor’s portfolio.
The secret for Indian investors is to look at international mutual funds as a diversifying opportunity, not as a replacement for domestic equity.
India remains an economy that is growing rapidly with good long-term prospects, but international exposure softens portfolios from local shocks while providing access to innovation and megatrends playing out overseas.
Happy investing.
Table Note: Data as of October 03, 2025
The securities quoted are for illustration only and are not recommendatory
Past performance is not an indicator for future returns.
Returns are on rolling CAGR basis and in %. Direct Plan-Growth option.
Those depicted over 1-Yr are compounded annualised.
Risk ratios are calculated over a 3-year period assuming a risk-free rate of 6% p.a.
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