SEBI unveils MITRA to reconnect inactive mutual fund folios—Full details inside | Mint
Source: Live Mint
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has launched MITRA to help investors track inactive mutual fund folios, ensuring KYC compliance and reducing fraud risks according to a detailed notification released by SEBI on February 12, 2025.
This is a step taken by the regulator in the interest of investor goodwill and protection.
What is MITRA?
The SEBI has put in place this new platform MITRA, which is abbreviated as Mutual Fund Investment Tracing and Retrieval Assistant, as detailed through a recent notification on the official website of SEBI. This initiative aims at identifying inactive or unclaimed mutual fund folios which were neglected over the years, for investors.
Why was MITRA created?
Earlier mutual fund records were not digital. They were created on paper and given to the respective fund holder. Later on with the advent of technology and the introduction of KYC i.e., Know Your Customer, leading asset management firms turned towards digital distribution of mutual fund schemes. Due to this lag, many investors have still not turned their record digital. Due to this they are unable to keep track of their mutual funds investments.
On the other hand there are many matured portfolios that are older than 10 years and are prone to frauds and misuse of funds. MITRA takes up this cause to address all these concerns by providing a searchable centralized database for these folios.
How does MITRA work?
It will be facilitated by the Registrars and Transfer Agents (RTAs), e.g., CAMS and KFin Technologies, in collaboration with Asset Management Companies (AMCs). Investors can access MITRA through any of the various channels: MF Central, AMCs, Association of Mutual Funds in India, and SEBI’s official website. It will reveal any investments that might have been neglected and help in facilitating the unlocking of KYC compliance. For complete details on this the official website of SEBI can be referred to.
What benefits would MITRA bring?
With MITRA, the investors can now find those forgotten, missed or lost investments and ensure that their KYC information is updated. This will help the investors in bringing their folios in the mainstream. This will not only reduce the possibilities of fraud but also increase transparency in the mutual fund sector. It aims at safeguarding unclaimed folios to the maximum extent possible in order to protect the interests of the investors.
When will MITRA be released?
The platform is expected to become functional within a period of 15 working days from the date of the announcement by SEBI. It will have a two month beta launch to allow any stabilization and feedback from end users.
Hence, SEBI’s MITRA platform is a significant step towards empowering investors by making it easier to trace inactive mutual fund folios and promoting better compliance with KYC norms.
