SBI Mutual Fund launches its second strategy under the SIF platform, targeting opportunities in mid and small-cap equities with a flexible long-short approach, marking a significant expansion in India’s specialised investment landscape.
SBI Mutual Fund has launched its second strategy under India’s Specialised Investment Fund, or SIF, platform, opening a new route for investors looking beyond the country’s largest companies. The new offer, called the Magnum Equity Ex-Top 100 Long Short Fund, opened for subscription on August 7 and will remain available until August 20, according to Business Today Bazaar.
The fund is structured as an open-ended strategy and is aimed at long-term capital appreciation. Its portfolio will focus primarily on equity and equity-related instruments of companies that are not included among India’s top 100 by market capitalisation. It will also have the flexibility to take limited short positions through derivatives, which the fund house says may help both improve returns and manage volatility. The benchmark has been set as the BSE 500 TRI.
Debashish Mishra, managing director and chief executive of SBI Funds Management, said the launch marks an important expansion of the company’s SIF platform. He said the strategy is built around research-led investing and is designed to capture opportunities in a changing Indian market. SBI Mutual Fund already has a SIF presence through the Magnum Hybrid Long Short Fund, which the fund house says reflects a broader move into more flexible, multi-asset and derivative-linked strategies.
According to the scheme documents for the existing Magnum Hybrid Long Short Fund, Gaurav Mehta, head of SIF Equity at SBI Mutual Fund, manages the product. The documents also describe Mehta as a CFA charterholder with more than 19 years of experience in Indian markets. In the same material, SBI Mutual Fund positions its SIF offerings for investors seeking capital growth with a relatively lower-risk profile than pure equity bets, although the new equity-focused fund still carries the risks associated with smaller and mid-sized companies.
For new investors, the minimum application size is ₹10 lakh, in line with the eligibility rules for SIF products. Existing Magnum SIF investors can enter with at least ₹1 lakh in a single application, provided their total exposure across Magnum SIF strategies is at least ₹10 lakh at the PAN level. Units redeemed or switched within three months will attract a 1% exit load, while exits after that period will not. Gains held for more than 12 months will fall under the current long-term capital gains tax regime, with the first ₹1.25 lakh in a financial year exempt from tax.
SBI Mutual Fund, India’s largest asset manager, reported average assets under management of more than ₹12.57 lakh crore in the April-June 2026 quarter.
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