Specialised Investment Funds (SIFs) let serious investors access long-short equity, sector rotation, and dynamic multi-asset strategies — the kind of sophistication once locked behind ₹50 lakh PMS gates — for a minimum of just ₹10 lakh per PAN, fully SEBI-regulated.
Introduced by SEBI in February 2025 and made operational on 1 April 2025, the SIF is a regulated investment vehicle that sits squarely between traditional Mutual Funds and Portfolio Management Services — designed for investors who want active, sophisticated strategies without the ₹50 lakh PMS commitment.
| Parameter | Mutual Fund | SIF | PMS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Min Investment | ₹500 | ₹10 Lakh | ₹50 Lakh |
| Long-Short Allowed | No | Yes (up to 25%) | Yes |
| SEBI Regulated | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pooled Vehicle | Yes | Yes | No (individual) |
| MF-style Taxation | Yes | Yes | No (per-trade) |
| Daily NAV | Yes | Yes | No |
SIFs operate under SEBI Mutual Fund Regulations — pooled structure, daily NAV disclosure by 11:00 PM, and the same tax treatment as MFs. No PMS-style per-trade tax events when you rebalance.
Fund managers can take unhedged short positions up to 25% of net assets through derivatives — enabling long-short equity, sector rotation, and dynamic asset allocation strategies. The same tools an HNI uses, in a regulated wrapper.
Only AMCs with a 3-year track record and ₹10,000 cr+ average AUM (or who hire a CIO with 10+ years of fund management experience) can offer SIFs. Risk-band is updated monthly. Portfolios disclosed every alternate month.
The ₹10 lakh PAN-level minimum is not arbitrary — it filters for investors who can absorb 1-2 year drawdown cycles and who genuinely need long-short exposure. Accredited Investors are exempt from this threshold.
Each AMC can launch only one strategy per category — keeping the SIF universe tight, comparable, and free of look-alike products. Here's how the SEBI framework breaks down.
Minimum 80% in listed equity. Up to 25% unhedged short exposure via exchange-traded derivatives. Captures both upside in rising markets and downside protection in corrections.
Focuses on companies outside the top 100 by market cap — the mid- and small-cap discovery zone — with a derivatives-based short hedge to manage the sharper drawdowns these segments experience.
Invests in a maximum of four sectors at a time, rotating tactically as macro and earnings cycles shift. Short positions hedge sectors entering down-cycle while long positions ride the up-cycle.
Invests across debt durations with controlled unhedged short exposure via exchange-traded debt derivatives. Aims to generate returns in both rising and falling rate environments.
Invests in debt instruments of minimum 2 sectors (max 75% in one sector) with up to 25% naked derivative exposure in same-sector debt. A specialist tool for credit-cycle rotation.
Dynamic allocation across equity, debt, REITs, InvITs, equity & debt derivatives, and commodity derivatives. The closest SIFs come to a true multi-asset all-weather strategy.
Minimum 25% in equity, minimum 25% in debt. Maximum 25% unhedged derivative position across both. The most popular SIF category by AUM today — and for good reason.
Strategy selection should follow your risk profile, time horizon, and existing portfolio — not the other way around. A 20-minute conversation with us will narrow it down to 2-3 SIFs that actually make sense for you.
Talk to Alpesh →As of May 2026, SEBI has approved 16 fund houses to operate SIF businesses under distinct brand identities. Click any AMC tile below to visit their official SIF page directly. We help you access every one of them — through a single AMFI-registered relationship.
The Indian asset management industry has waited two decades for a product like the SIF. For most of that time, the gap between the ₹500 SIP and the ₹50 lakh PMS ticket was so wide that the average serious investor — someone with ₹15–40 lakh of investable surplus — had no real way to access long-short or active multi-asset strategies in a regulated, transparent wrapper. SIFs fix that. But "fix" doesn't mean "guarantee".
Here is what I tell every Kanethic client who asks me about putting their first ₹10 lakh into a SIF: track record matters more than brand name. SBI, ICICI, and HDFC are household names in mutual funds — that doesn't automatically transfer to long-short. Running a derivatives-overlay portfolio in a downward market is a very different discipline from running an equity index fund. The early performance data from the March 2026 drawdown is already telling us something interesting: smaller, more specialised AMCs like Edelweiss and Quant have, so far, protected capital better than some of the marquee houses. We need at least 18-24 months more data before we can rank with confidence, but the early signal is worth respecting.
My second concern is liquidity. AMCs can impose a notice period of up to 15 working days on redemption. For most hybrid SIFs running active-asset-allocator strategies, this is not a problem in normal markets — but in a 2008-style or COVID-style dislocation, that notice period is exactly when you might want your money. Treat SIF allocation the same way you'd treat illiquid real estate: only commit money you genuinely won't need to touch for 3-5 years.
Third — and this is the part the marketing brochures won't tell you — SIFs are not yet a substitute for a core equity allocation. They are a satellite. A well-built HNI portfolio in 2026 still has its centre of gravity in a few thoughtfully chosen flexi-cap and multi-cap mutual funds, with a SIF allocation of perhaps 10-25% sitting alongside it. Investors who treat SIFs as the new core run the risk of finding out, two years from now, that they took on category-design risk they didn't need to take.
That said — for the right client, in the right size, at the right entry point, SIFs are genuinely the most exciting development in Indian retail asset management since the introduction of index funds. They give us, the distributor community, our first real tool to construct portfolios that can defend in down-markets without resorting to expensive PMS or opaque AIF structures. That's worth taking seriously.
If you're considering your first SIF allocation, the right starting question is not "Which SIF should I buy?" It is: "Do I have the temperament, the time horizon, and the surplus to make this work?" Answer that first. We'll help you answer the rest.
A 30-minute conversation about your goals, time horizon, existing portfolio, and risk temperament. No sales pitch — we genuinely need to understand whether a SIF fits before we recommend one.
Based on your profile, we shortlist 2-3 SIF strategies from across AMCs. You receive a written comparison covering returns, drawdown behaviour, fund manager track record, and our verdict.
Existing MF KYC works for SIF too. We handle the paperwork, accreditation check (if applicable), AMC onboarding, and the first transaction setup end-to-end.
Quarterly review meetings, monthly NAV tracking, risk-band updates the day SEBI publishes them, and a single point of contact for the life of your investment.
One short conversation. No obligation. We'll tell you honestly whether you should invest, wait, or skip the category entirely.
SEBI designed SIFs for a specific investor profile. This quick check tells you where you stand — honestly, before any conversation with us.
No email required. No data stored. Just an honest read on whether the SIF category fits you today.
Tell us about yourself and what you're trying to solve. We'll respond within one working day with a calendar link and a brief preparation note.
An AMFI Registered Mutual Fund & SIF Distributor based in Jamnagar, Gujarat — serving investors across India and NRI families globally since 1987.