Family Matters: The Performance Flow Relationship in the Mutual Fund Industry

The relationship between the performance of mutual funds and their subsequent growth is examined. The focus of our paper is on the influence of the position of a fund within its family. So far only the influence of the position of a fund within its segment on its subsequent inflows has been considered. Our empirical study of the US mutual fund market shows that fund growth depends on the relative position of a fund within its segment AND within its family. This leads to important incentives for fund managers.