ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has filed draft papers with SEBI to launch its Specialised Investment Fund platform under iSIF brand, marking its formal entry into a new category of regulated investment products designed for affluent investors.
It has sought permission to launch iSIF Equity Ex-Top 100 Long-Short Fund, an open-ended strategy focused primarily on mid-cap and small-cap stocks, with the ability to take limited short positions through derivatives.
The strategy aims for long-term capital appreciation by investing in equity and equity-related instruments of companies outside the top 100 by market capitalisation, while using derivatives selectively to manage risk or use derivatives to take bearish calls.
Fund allocation
The fund will invest 65 per cent in midcaps and small caps, and balance can be invested in large-caps.
ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has also filed documents for a hybrid long-short fund, which combines equity and debt exposure and allows limited short positions in both asset classes. Hybrid strategies are designed to dynamically adjust asset allocation based on market conditions.
The investment strategy shall invest 65-75 per cent in equity and 25-35 per cent in debt. It may also take short exposure through unhedged derivative positions in equity and debt instruments up to 25 per cent. Given the unhedged exposure, the positions of equity and debt in the portfolio will vary as per the given market conditions.
SIFs bridge the gap between traditional mutual funds and alternative investment funds. SIFs accept investments of ₹10 lakh and above at PAN level and allow fund managers greater flexibility in portfolio construction.
ICICI Prudential MF’s proposed iSIF platform will be housed within ICICI Prudential MF, which is registered under the SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 1996. The same fund management teams that run ICICI Prudential’s mutual funds will manage the iSIF strategies.