SIPs

The sachet — till now identical with shampoos, pickles, kumkum and a host of other consumable products — will soon see a new product packed into it. Yes, small-amount mutual funds will hit the market soon, if the wishes of SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch fructify. The Securities and Exchange Board of India is considering bringing down the minimum investment for systematic investment plans (SIPs) to as low as ₹250, according to the SEBI Chief. SEBI is working with the mutual fund industry to see what the regulator can do to bring the viable SIP level down to ₹250 a month, “because then it is the equivalent of what Hindustan Lever did with shampoo sachets. You just explode the market,” Buch had said. Financial inclusion“This will allow greater participation in MFs from the bottom of the pyramid, and is in keeping with the market regulator’s objective of greater financial inclusion,” she has been emphasising in the last few months. Currently, SIPs as low as ₹100 are offered by a few fund houses but ₹500 is the minimum SIP size offered…