JioBlackRock Asset Management has launched its Prism Hybrid Long-Short Fund as an interval investment strategy, marking its entry into the specialised investment fund (SIF) segment. The fund allows twice-weekly redemptions and is designed to generate capital appreciation and income by blending equity, debt, derivatives, and alternative investments. The New Fund Offer (NFO) is open for subscription until July 13 with a minimum investment threshold of ₹10 lakh. According to The Economic Times, the scheme will operate as an absolute-return strategy, investing across equities, debt, derivatives, and event-driven opportunities such as merger arbitrage, with expectations of 1-3 percentage points higher returns than pure equity arbitrage over a market cycle.
The fund will maintain 35-75 per cent exposure to equities, at least 25 per cent in debt and money market instruments, and up to 20 per cent in InvITs. As reported by The Economic Times, within equities, it will invest in derivative-based collar strategies, merger arbitrage, and REITs. The scheme will also use 'IPO flips', tender offers, and other special situations to enhance returns. The fund will invest using BlackRock's systematic investing framework, supported by advanced signal research, big data, machine learning, and risk-management capabilities licensed from BlackRock, including Aladdin. The performance will be benchmarked against NIFTY 50 Hybrid Composite Debt 50:50 Index.
ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund announced the launch of its multi-asset active fund of funds (FoF), which will dynamically allocate investments across equity, debt, commodity ETFs, and gold/silver ETFs. The New Fund Offer (NFO) will open for subscription on June 30 and close on July 14, 2026, with a minimum investment of ₹1,000 and offer price of ₹10.00. The fund will invest 30-80 per cent in active equity funds, 10-60 per cent in active debt funds, and 10-30 per cent in gold and silver ETFs, with allocations changing based on the relative attractiveness of each asset class. The scheme will be benchmarked against a composite index comprising 55% Nifty 200 TRI, 35% NIFTY Composite Debt Index, 7% domestic gold prices and 3% domestic silver prices. The fund will be managed by Dharmesh Kakkad, Manish Banthia, Akhil Kakkar, Sharmila D'Silva and Gaurav Chikane.
The current launch comes at a time when Indian equity markets have experienced heightened volatility and wider dispersion across stocks and market capitalisations. As reported by The Economic Times, the fund aims to deliver better risk-adjusted returns with lower volatility while maintaining relatively lower portfolio drawdowns. Sankaran Naren, Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer at ICICI Prudential AMC, emphasized that different asset classes perform differently across economic and market cycles, making disciplined asset allocation an important component of long-term investing. The fund house believes the current investment environment supports a diversified approach, citing India's structural growth prospects, the stability offered by fixed-income investments, and the role of gold and silver as potential hedges against inflation and geopolitical uncertainty.
