'Tahe dil se shukriya aada karte hai…,' says Sebi chief Madhabi Puri Buch to SBI MF; here's why

Buch added that over the last year, every time she spoke about mutual funds as a product for financial inclusion in the capital markets, and how they want to make micro SIPs and the 250-rupee SIP popular, she knew SBI would be at the forefront.

Madhabi Puri Buch, Chairperson, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), lauded the role that SBI Mutual Fund has played in the mutual fund industry over the years. She was speaking at an event organised by SBI MF on July 19 to mark its assets under management (AUM) crossing Rs 10 trillion.

Buch said that during times when SEBI needed to request government intervention, such as establishing a backstop facility for mutual funds in crisis situations, SBI Mutual Fund was the clear choice to manage these initiatives.

Also read: Does your heart beat for the customer, Sebi chief asks mutual fund distributors

"When we wanted to request the government to provide a backstop facility for mutual funds in the event of another crisis and when we wanted to institutionalise it, the simple question was, who will run this? We have said it without any hesitation, SBI MF will run it, who else will run it?" Buch recounted.

"SBI Mutual Fund has a very special place for the regulator (in that respect). And there are many other instances less publicly known, where again, SEBI relies or has relied on the broad shoulders of SBI Mutual Fund to do in its own way a part of the tremendous responsibility that is cast on us as a regulator," she said adding that this was a testament to the culture of the bank, which has manifested in the subsidiary.

Buch also praised the culture of the bank, which has manifested in its subsidiary, and thanked every member of the SBI Mutual Fund "family" for their support and service with the words, “Tahe dil se shukriya aada karte hai.” (I thank you from the bottom of my heart)

Buch added that over the last year, every time she spoke about mutual funds as a product for financial inclusion in the capital markets, and how they want to make micro SIPs and the 250-rupee SIP popular, she knew SBI would be at the forefront.  “I knew that SBI MF is the one mutual fund that can do it”.

Buch also praised the fund house for the role it has been playing in ensuring the stability and integrity of India's financial markets. "By stepping up during times of potential crisis, the fund not only supports the regulator but also bolsters investor confidence, reflecting the strong partnership between SEBI and SBI Mutual Fund in maintaining the robustness of the mutual fund industry," she said.

Answering a query on whether there is a need for distributors of a particular AMC to sell products of all AMCs, Buch noted: "A large number of funds with common benchmarks and categories exhibit similar performance. If an entity decides to sell only its group’s funds within this space, it should not be an issue. Different organizations have different strengths. For instance, Motilal Oswal is known for its strong equity brand. If SBI has a strong distribution network, why should they not use it? There is nothing wrong with that."

However, Buch added that selling underperforming funds is mis-selling. "The system must ensure that this does not happen. I am confident that the SBI group takes care of this issue well," she said.

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