December 20, 2025: ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has filed draft documents with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch its Specialised Investment Fund (SIF) platform branded iSIF, formally stepping into India’s new SIF category designed for sophisticated investors. The filing proposes two schemes under the platform – iSIF Equity Ex‑Top 100 Long‑Short Fund and iSIF Hybrid Long‑Short Fund – both built around long–short strategies with flexible asset allocation.​
According to initial disclosures, the iSIF platform will operate within ICICI Prudential’s existing mutual fund structure while leveraging the expanded toolkit permitted under SEBI’s SIF framework, including derivatives and tactical hedging. The move places the fund house among the early movers in a segment SEBI has pitched as a bridge between traditional mutual funds and higher‑end PMS/AIF offerings.​
Fund strategies: equity ex‑top 100 and hybrid long–short
The proposed iSIF Equity Ex‑Top 100 Long‑Short Fund will focus primarily on mid‑ and small‑cap companies outside the top 100 by market capitalisation, while retaining the ability to take short positions through derivatives. Draft documents indicate that a substantial part of the portfolio will be allocated to mid and small caps, with the balance in large caps and cash equivalents, and derivatives used selectively for hedging and tactical views.​
The iSIF Hybrid Long‑Short Fund, meanwhile, is designed as a hybrid strategy combining equity and debt with limited unhedged short exposure in both asset classes via derivatives. As per the draft, equity exposure is expected to range around 65–75%, with 25–35% in debt, and unhedged derivative shorts capped at roughly 25% of net assets, causing the equity–debt mix to vary with market conditions. Both funds are proposed to be offered at an NFO price of ₹10 per unit, with nil entry load and a 1% exit load if redeemed within 12 months, subject to regulatory approval.​
Who the new iSIF platform is for
Under SEBI’s clarified SIF rules, investors must maintain a minimum investment of ₹10 lakh at the PAN level across all SIF strategies of a mutual fund house, effectively restricting access to affluent and high‑net‑worth investors. Reflecting this, commentary around iSIF has described it as a “VIP‑club”–style offering for investors seeking hedge‑like strategies within a regulated mutual fund‑type wrapper rather than mass retail participation.​
Industry experts note that the target segment includes HNIs and wealthy clients looking for diversification beyond long‑only mutual funds but still preferring mutual‑fund‑style transparency, daily NAVs and trustee oversight over PMS or AIF structures. Wealth managers and distributors are expected to play a central role in explaining long–short mechanics, the implications of unhedged derivative exposure and the role of SIFs in overall portfolio construction.​
SEBI’s SIF framework and market backdrop
SEBI introduced the SIF framework effective April 2025 to allow asset managers to launch strategy‑focused schemes with greater flexibility, including long–short, concentrated and dynamic allocation approaches. The regulator has mandated a ₹10 lakh minimum, daily monitoring of this threshold, and brand differentiation for SIFs to ensure only sufficiently experienced investors participate and to prevent confusion with regular mutual funds.​
Several large Indian AMCs and global players have signalled plans to enter the SIF arena, especially with long–short equity and hybrid strategies aimed at wealthy investors. ICICI Prudential’s move, coinciding with its own capital‑market milestones, is seen as a bid to capture early share in a category that promises hedge‑fund‑like tools with mutual‑fund‑style regulation and taxation.​
Next steps and launch timeline
The iSIF filings are currently under SEBI review, and final launch timelines will depend on the regulator’s observations and subsequent registration of the schemes. Once cleared, the funds are expected to be distributed via ICICI Prudential’s existing online channels, banks, national distributors and emerging SIF discovery platforms, with a minimum application size of ₹10 lakh.​
Market participants will be watching closely to see whether iSIF’s long–short equity and hybrid offerings can gain traction as a middle‑ground alternative to PMS and AIFs, especially among HNIs who want sophisticated strategies without exiting the mutual fund regulatory umbrella. If successful, ICICI Prudential’s SIF platform could accelerate broader adoption of the category and shape how India’s affluent investors access hedge‑like strategies in the years ahead.
