Formalization, increased pay, and the recruitment of new members fuel record growth.
According to a Moneycontrol study of EPFO statistics, the corpus of India’s Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) has increased by about five times in the last ten years, representing both the steady growth of formal employment and a rise in the salary base of organized-sector workers.
One of the biggest decadal surges in the fund’s history occurred when the overall corpus increased from Rs 5.46 lakh crore in FY14 to Rs 24.76 lakh crore in FY24.
Savings for Retirement Drive the Increase
The primary EPF account, which combines employers’ and workers’ retirement funds, grew from Rs 3.25 lakh crore to Rs 15.29 lakh crore within the overall corpus between FY14 and FY24.
The Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) fund, which offers members life insurance, increased more moderately from Rs 13,711 crore to Rs 45,529 crore, while the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS) component increased from Rs 2.08 lakh crore to Rs 8.76 lakh crore.
While the EPS portion decreased from 38 percent to 35.4 percent, indicating quicker accumulation in the primary provident fund, the EPF’s part of the overall corpus increased over time, rising from 59.5 percent in FY14 to 61.8 percent in FY24.
Officialization and Policy Assistance
Due to the EPFO’s growing coverage and government assistance programs like the PM Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY) and Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana (ABRY), the increase is in line with the further formalization of India’s labor market.
Increased compliance and enrollment have resulted from the digital implementation of the Universal Account Number (UAN), which has significantly streamlined member monitoring and portability.
7.82 crore new members have joined the EPF system in the last seven years.
The increasing number of partial withdrawals—nearly 3 crore claims in FY24—indicates a strong demand for liquidity among members even as the corpus grows.
Over time, experts warn that this increased reliance on EPF funds for immediate needs may jeopardize retirement security.