Mutual fund NFOs on hold for 3 months. Find out why?

Short bites to keep you informed of matters that impact your wallet and wealth

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New Fund Offers from mutual fund companies or Asset Management Companies as they are technically known as come across as an easier way for investors to start investing in new mutual fund schemes. In 2021, there were more than 100 NFOs launched and it mopped up Rs 53000 crores just up till Oct 2021.

Hop on to our Top Bite section to find out why mutual fund NFOs are on hold for now.

Top Bite this week

Why mutual fund NFOs are on hold for now?

What’s going on here?

NFOs are popular as they offer new themes, strategies, and investment options to investors and can add portfolio diversification.

Despite NFOs turning out to be good investment options for investors, SEBI has put a hold on new fund offers for 3 months.

Why has SEBI put a hold over NFOs?

As we have seen time and again, investors’ interest is of prime importance for SEBI.

Usually, whenever an NFO is open for subscription, investors apply for the scheme and transfer funds. It may be through a third-party intermediary, stockbroker, mutual fund advisor, or an online platform. But the amount is not transferred to the AMC /Mutual fund house offering the Scheme immediately. It is held in a pooled account of the intermediary and transferred to the AMC only at the end of the NFO period.

The problem here is that pooled account holds money collected for different asset classes and there is a lack of transparency on how the funds are utilized till the time the NFO closes. So, SEBI wants the funds to move directly from the investors’ bank to the Clearing corporation without other entities getting involved in between.

Further SEBI is also looking at implementing a 2-factor authentication (2FA) for the redemption of mutual funds.

The mutual fund industry had time till 01 April to implement these two guidelines but ahead of the deadline, the mutual fund industry represented by the AMFI asked for an extension of the deadline till 01 July and voluntarily decided to put new fund offers on hold so that they get more time to implement these guidelines.

How does it affect you as an investor?

You won’t have the option to choose new funds but there are a number of mutual fund schemes running in all categories. You could pick a fund to invest in based on your asset allocation and risk appetite.

Further, as this move is in the interest of the investors, it makes it worth waiting for a few more months and investing in NFOs with added security.

You ask We answer

How can I save tax by investing in Indian & US stocks and in cryptos? – Parixit Kumar

Direct investing in Indian stocks, US stocks, or cryptos will not help you save tax. The gains in each of these categories are taxed differently. But, if you invest in stocks through the Equity Linked Saving Scheme route, that can help you save tax of up to Rs 46,800 per year depending upon your tax slab and the amount of investment.

Refer to this for taxation on Indian stocks and on cryptos.

Quiz Bite

Do NFOs and IPOs function in the same way?

(No is the answer, though on the face of it, both seem similar they are different. In an IPO, a company offers its shares for subscription, while an NFO is just an invitation to the investors to subscribe to the units of the new mutual fund scheme. Check out a detailed explanation here.)

Akshatha Sajumon