Mutual fund investors get time till March 31 to nominate beneficiary

Existing mutual fund investors have time till March 31 to nominate a beneficiary or opt out of it by submitting a declaration form, failing which their folios will be frozen, and they will not be able to redeem investment.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), in its circular on June 15, 2022, made it mandatory for mutual fund subscribers to submit the nomination details or declaration to opt out of the nomination on or after August 1, 2022. Later, the deadline was extended to October 1, 2022.

The deadline for all the existing mutual fund folios, including jointly-held ones, was set as March 31, 2023, failing which the folios will be frozen for debits.

Explaining the rationale behind the Sebi's move, Anand Rathi Wealth Ltd COO Niranjan Babu Ramayanam said that many investment accounts in the past have been opened without nominating anyone to whom the assets should be transmitted in case something happens to the account holders.

This means that the rightful heirs had ..