Aditya Birla SL Arbitrage Fund - Dir (IDCW)

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has introduced a voluntary debit freeze facility for mutual fund folios to strengthen investor security.

The feature will allow investors to lock their holdings and prevent any debit transactions such as redemptions or transfers. The circular will take effect from 30 April 2026.

The facility will apply to both demat and non-demat mutual fund folios. Investors will initially be able to activate the lock through the MF Central platform. Once activated, no units can be redeemed or transferred until the folio is unlocked by the investor.

MF Central is an industry platform jointly managed by Computer Age Management Services and KFin Technologies. The feature will initially be available only to KYC-compliant investors with registered mobile numbers and email IDs.

SEBI has tasked the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) with defining the operational framework. AMFI will outline the process for locking and unlocking folios and specify which transactions remain permitted during the freeze period.

Asset management companies and registrars will disclose operational details on their websites and in scheme documents.

The measure adds a security layer for mutual fund investors. It is designed to reduce the risk of unauthorized transactions and fraudulent redemptions.

The mechanism is similar to debit freeze facilities already available in bank and demat accounts.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has allowed actively managed equity mutual funds to invest part of their residual allocation in gold and silver instruments.

The limit is up to 35% of assets and also includes units of infrastructure investment trusts.

This expands the range of non-equity assets available to fund managers.

Under the revised framework, equity schemes can deploy surplus allocations beyond core equity exposure into precious metals.

These investments will typically be made through ETFs or related instruments. Earlier, this portion of the portfolio was largely parked in cash, liquid securities, or money-market instruments.

The change gives fund managers an additional tool to manage volatility and diversify portfolios.

Gold is widely used as a hedge during market stress. Silver offers both safe-haven characteristics and exposure to industrial demand.

Media reports suggest that most funds are expected to use this newly granted flexibility selectively. Allocations to metals are likely to remain small and tactical.

As a result, the overall risk–return profile and equity orientation of most schemes is unlikely to change materially.

The facility will be available for both demat and non-demat folios and will initially be offered through the MF Central platform, an interoperable registrar and transfer agent (RTA) system designed to streamline mutual fund service requests.

According to the circular issued on 6 March 2026, the debit freeze option will be available only to investors who are KYC-compliant and have both a registered email ID and mobile number. Investors will be able to activate the lock through RTAs via the MF Central platform in the first phase.

SEBI said the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) will prescribe the detailed procedure for locking and unlocking folios and define the list of financial and non-financial transactions that may be permitted during the freeze period. Asset management companies and RTAs will also be required to disclose the process for opting into the facility and its implications on their websites and in the Statement of Additional Information.

The circular will come into effect from 30 April 2026. SEBI said the measure has been introduced to safeguard investor interests and strengthen the security framework for mutual fund investments.

ICICI Prudential Equity - Arbitrage Fund:

Regular Plan – IDCW: 0.0500

Direct Plan – IDCW: 0.0500

ICICI Prudential Multi - Asset Fund:

Regular Plan – IDCW: 0.1600

Direct Plan – IDCW: 0.1600

Nippon India Balanced Advantage Fund - Regular Plan – IDCW 0.2200

Nippon India Balanced Advantage Fund - Direct Plan – IDCW: 0.2200

Nippon India Multi Asset Allocation Fund - Regular Plan – IDCW 0.1500

Nippon India Multi Asset Allocation Fund - Direct Plan – IDCW: 0.1500

Change in Fund Manager:

Invesco India Balanced Advantage Fund – Regular IDCW Option & Direct IDCW Option: 0.15

Details of Mr. Ajay Rotti Jayathirtha

Age: 46 years

Designation: Independent Director

Qualification: Bachelor of Commerce from Bangalore University (2001)

FCA from Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (2002)

Bachelor of Law from Karnataka State Law University (2024) .

Name: Ms. Anand Upadhyay

Designation: Research Associate - Equity

Change in Exit Load:

Nippon India Growth Mid Cap Fund - Regular Plan – IDCW: 9.0000

Nippon India Growth Mid Cap Fund - Direct Plan – IDCW: 14.0000

Nippon India Growth Mid Cap Fund - Inst (IDCW) - Direct Plan – IDCW: 85.0000

DSP Flexi Cap Fund - Regular Plan – IDCW: 5.100000

DSP Flexi Cap Fund - Direct Plan – IDCW: 7.500000

DSP Natural Resources and New Energy Fund - Regular Plan – IDCW: 3.400000

DSP Natural Resources and New Energy Fund - Direct Plan – IDCW: 2.800000

DSP Value Fund - Regular Plan - IDCW: 1.400000

DSP Value Fund - Direct Plan - IDCW: 1.600000

Tata Aggressive Hybrid Fund – Regular Plan & Direct Plan: 0.36 each.

HDFC Flexi Cap Fund:

Regular Plan – IDCW: 7.00

Direct Plan – IDCW: 7.00

HDFC Multi Cap Fund:

Regular Plan – IDCW: 0.75

Direct Plan – IDCW: 0.75

HDFC Small Cap Fund:

Regular Plan – IDCW: 4.00

Direct Plan – IDCW: 4.00

Details of Ms. Sonal Dave

Age: 61 years

Designation: Independent Director

Qualification: B. Com, Chartered Accountant .

Change in Fund Manager:

Definition and structure

Life Cycle Funds are defined as open-ended funds with a target date maturity following a glide path strategy and investing across various asset classes, including equity, debt, InvITs, ETCDs, Gold ETFs and Silver ETFs.

These schemes must follow the asset allocation structure. The framework specifies relatively higher permissible equity exposure in the earlier years to maturity. As the scheme approaches maturity, the permissible equity exposure reduces, with corresponding allocation ranges for debt and other permitted asset classes.

Tenure and launch conditions

Mutual funds may launch Life Cycle Funds with a minimum tenure of 5 years and a maximum tenure of 30 years. Such funds may be launched only in tenures that are multiples of five years.

A mutual fund can have a maximum of six Life Cycle Funds open for subscription at any given point in time.

Additionally, when a Life Cycle Fund has less than one year remaining to maturity, it may be merged with the nearest maturity Life Cycle Fund, subject to obtaining positive consent from unitholders.

Asset allocation glide path

Sebi prescribed detailed allocation ranges for different maturity buckets. For instance, in a 30-year Life Cycle Fund, equity allocation may range between 65% and 95% when the fund has 15 to 30 years remaining to maturity. As the fund approaches maturity, the permissible equity allocation reduces in stages, and allocation to debt correspondingly increases.

For years to maturity below five years, Life Cycle Funds may take equity arbitrage exposure of up to 50% in addition to the specified equity range, provided that total investment in equity and equity-related instruments remains within the prescribed limits for such schemes.

Where years to maturity are between one and three years, exposure in debt instruments is restricted to AA and above rated instruments with residual maturity less than the target maturity of the scheme.

ETCD exposure is permitted only in Gold and Silver.

Exit load structure

To promote financial discipline, Life Cycle Funds shall levy an exit load of 3% on exits within one year of investment, 2% on exits within two years of investment and 1% on exits within three years of investment.

Naming and benchmark requirements

Life Cycle Funds are required to include the maturity year in the scheme nomenclature, for example "Life Cycle Fund 2055."

Such schemes shall follow the benchmark framework prescribed for Multi Asset Allocation Funds.

Regulatory intent

By codifying tenure, glide path allocation bands, exit load structure and naming conventions, SEBI has established a standardised framework for target date, goal-based investing products within the mutual fund ecosystem.

In a circular issued on 26 February 2026, SEBI superseded Clause 2.6 of Chapter 2 of the Master Circular for Mutual Funds dated 27 June 2024 and introduced revised categories, scheme characteristics and uniform descriptions across equity, debt, hybrid, life cycle and fund of fund segments.

50% overlap ceiling for sectoral and thematic equity schemes

SEBI has mandated that sectoral and thematic equity schemes shall ensure that portfolio overlap does not exceed 50% with other equity schemes in the sectoral/thematic category and other equity scheme categories, except large cap schemes.

Portfolio overlap is to be computed on a quarterly basis using the average of daily overlap values at the individual ISIN level, in accordance with the methodology prescribed in Annexure A of the circular.

Existing sectoral and thematic schemes have been given three years from the date of the circular to comply. Mutual funds must reduce 35% of the excess overlap in the first year, an additional 35% in the second year and the remaining 30% in the third year. Schemes unable to meet the criteria after three years shall be mandatorily merged in accordance with applicable provisions.

Further, mutual funds offering both value and contra funds must ensure that portfolio overlap between the two schemes does not exceed 50%.

Sectoral and thematic funds may be launched only as per the list of sectors and themes published and updated half yearly by the Association of Mutual Funds in India in consultation with SEBI.

Solution-oriented schemes discontinued

The solution-oriented schemes category stands discontinued with effect from 26 February 2026. Existing schemes under this category are required to stop accepting subscriptions with immediate effect and shall be merged with another scheme having similar asset allocation and risk profile, subject to prior approval from SEBI.

Uniform naming and true-to-label requirement

SEBI has directed that, for ease of identification and to ensure schemes remain true to label, the scheme name shall be the same as the scheme category. Words or phrases that highlight or emphasise only the return aspect of the scheme shall not be used in the name.

The “type of scheme” description appearing in offer documents and marketing material must strictly adhere to the uniform description prescribed in the circular.

Consequent changes to nomenclature, investment objective, investment strategy, benchmark or other parameters to align with the revised categories shall not be treated as fundamental attribute changes. Existing schemes must comply within six months from 26 February 2026.

Life Cycle Funds framework introduced

The circular provides a detailed framework for Life Cycle Funds, defined as open-ended funds with a target date maturity following a glide path strategy across equity, debt, InvITs, ETCDs, Gold and Silver ETFs.

Life Cycle Funds may be launched with a minimum tenure of 5 years and a maximum of 30 years, in multiples of five years. A mutual fund may have a maximum of six such funds open for subscription at any given time. Funds with less than one year to maturity may be merged with the nearest maturity Life Cycle Fund, subject to positive consent from unitholders.

These schemes will follow prescribed asset allocation bands based on years to maturity and will carry graded exit loads of 3% within one year of investment, 2% within two years and 1% within three years.

Debt and hybrid categories retained with safeguards

Duration-based classifications for debt schemes, from overnight to long term funds, have been retained. SEBI clarified that Macaulay duration must be disclosed at the portfolio level.

In respect of medium term and medium to long term funds, fund managers may reduce portfolio duration in anticipated adverse situations in the interest of investors. Such decisions must be recorded with written justification, placed before trustees and reported in the half yearly trustee report to SEBI.

Hybrid schemes continue under conservative, balanced, aggressive, dynamic asset allocation, multi asset, arbitrage and equity savings categories with defined asset allocation ranges. Foreign securities will not be treated as a separate asset class.

Standardised framework for Fund of Funds

Sebi lays down a standardised framework for domestic, overseas and domestic and overseas fund of fund schemes with multiple underlying funds. The framework prescribes categorisation, benchmark construction principles, nomenclature requirements and limits on the number of FoFs that may be launched by an AMC under each category.

Existing FoFs exceeding the permitted number under any category may be grandfathered, but fresh launches beyond the prescribed limits will not be permitted. AMCs are required to align or re-categorise existing FoFs in accordance with the framework.

Monthly disclosure of portfolio overlap

Mutual funds are required to disclose category-wise portfolio overlap levels on their websites on a monthly basis, covering equity schemes versus other equity schemes, debt schemes versus other debt schemes and hybrid schemes versus other hybrid schemes.

What this means for investors

The regulator’s message is clear. Schemes must be true to label, product clutter must reduce, and thematic crowding cannot masquerade as differentiation. For investors, it promises clearer categories, cleaner comparisons and fewer look-alike schemes hiding behind creative names. If the 2017 categorisation exercise was about decluttering the shelf, the 2026 reset is about ensuring every product on that shelf actually does what it says on the label.

In a circular issued on 26 February 2026, the regulator said that with effect from 1 April 2026, mutual funds will be required to use polled spot prices published by recognized stock exchanges for valuing physical gold and silver. These are the same prices used for settlement of physically delivered gold and silver derivative contracts.

Currently, gold and silver held by Exchange Traded Funds are valued using the AM fixing prices of the London Bullion Market Association, with adjustments for currency conversion, transportation costs, customs duty, taxes and notional premiums or discounts to arrive at domestic valuations.

The shift follows discussions in the Mutual Fund Advisory Committee, public consultation and stakeholder feedback. SEBI said using exchange-published spot prices, which are subject to regulatory oversight and transparency norms, would ensure valuations that better reflect domestic market conditions and bring uniformity across fund houses.

The change comes under the newly notified SEBI Mutual Funds Regulations, 2026, which will take effect from 1 April 2026. The valuation will be subject to the investment valuation norms specified in the Seventh Schedule of the regulations.

The Association of Mutual Funds in India will, in consultation with SEBI, prescribe a uniform policy for implementation.

Details of Mr. Akshay Kumar Rao,

Age: 36 years

Designation: Head of Products & Strategy

Qualification: Post Graduate in Strategy and Finance from Indian School of Business, Mohali. Chartered Accountant from ICAI, Mumbai. Bachelor of Commerce from Mumbai University. .