Quant Mutual Fund has filed draft documents with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch two long-short funds under the Specialised Investment Fund (SIF) framework, according to Value Research report.
The proposed schemes are QSIF Equity Long-Short Fund and QSIF Equity Ex-Top 100 Long-Short Fund. The first will adopt a broad long-short strategy across the market, while the second will focus on mid- and small-cap stocks, excluding the top 100 companies by market capitalisation, according to Value Research.
The SIF framework, introduced by SEBI in early 2025, enables mutual funds to offer hedge-style products such as long-short equity, sectoral, and hybrid strategies, with a minimum ticket size of ₹10 lakh. Industry experts view this as a move to give sophisticated investors more flexibility within the regulated mutual fund space.
SIFs bridge the gap between mutual funds, portfolio management services (PMS) and alternative investment funds (AIFs). They combine the transparency of mutual funds with the flexibility of PMS and the strategy-specific focus of AIFs.
How are SIFs different from mutual funds?
| Feature | Mutual funds | SIFs |
| Structure | Rigid SEBI classification (equity, debt, hybrid, etc.) | More flexibility in strategy and asset allocation |
| Minimum Investment | ₹100 (for most schemes) | ₹10 lakh (as per SEBI guidelines) |
| Target Audience | Retail investors | HNIs and sophisticated investors |
| Customization | Limited | High – can be thematic or sectoral |
| Transparency & Regulation | Highly regulated, daily NAVs | Regulated, but with looser operational restrictions |
Quant is among the first asset managers to file for such products, with peers including Edelweiss, Mirae Asset and SBI Mutual Fund also preparing to launch similar strategies, Value Research noted.