The determinants of mutual fund starts

For a sample of 1163 mutual funds started over the period 1979-1992, we fin d that fund initiations are positively related to the level of assets inves ted in and the capital gains embedded in other funds with the same objectiv e, the fund family's prior performance, the fraction of funds in the family in the low range of fees, and the decision by large families to open simil ar funds in the prior year. In addition, consistent with the presence of sc ale and scope economies in fund openings, we find that large families and f amilies that have more experience in opening funds in the past are more lik ely to open new funds.