Benchmark on WebNotes

CRISIL Liquid Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The CRISIL Liquid Fund Index is the principal Indian benchmark for liquid funds and money-market mutual funds, tracking a basket of short-tenor government securities and high-quality corporate debt instruments. The index is constructed by CRISIL (Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited), India’s largest credit-rating agency and a leading provider of benchmark indices for the Indian debt market.

For Indian retail investors, the CRISIL Liquid Fund Index serves as the standard performance reference for liquid mutual funds. AMCs publish their liquid scheme returns against this benchmark in factsheets and marketing material per TRI benchmarking rules. When evaluating a liquid fund, investors should compare its performance against the CRISIL Liquid Fund Index for fair-context assessment.

How to read mutual fund benchmark comparison

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

MF benchmark comparison is the standard alpha-disclosure mechanism. Post-2018 TRI adoption made comparisons fair; alpha is now meaningful.

Conflict-of-interest disclosure. This guide is published by WebNotes Editorial Team for informational purposes. WebNotes has no commercial relationship with any AMC or platform. No affiliate commission is earned.

Step-by-step procedure

See the procedure infobox above for the six steps.

External references

References

SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 1996.
SEBI TRI benchmark circular, 2018.
SEBI Master Circular for Mutual Funds.
AMFI Best Practice Guidelines.

How to understand mutual fund Tier 1 and Tier 2 benchmarks

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Tier 1 / Tier 2 benchmark framework (SEBI 2021) standardised MF benchmarking. Comparison fairness improved significantly post-implementation.

Step-by-step procedure

See the procedure infobox above for the five steps.

Category-wise Tier 1 benchmarks

Category	Tier 1
Large-cap	Nifty 100 TRI / S&P BSE 100 TRI
Flexi-cap	Nifty 500 TRI
Multi-cap	Nifty 500 Multicap 50:25:25 TRI
Mid-cap	Nifty Midcap 150 TRI
Small-cap	Nifty Smallcap 250 TRI
Large & Mid	Nifty Large Midcap 250 TRI
ELSS	Nifty 500 TRI
Liquid	CRISIL Liquid Index
Short Duration	CRISIL Short Duration
Aggressive Hybrid	CRISIL Hybrid 35+65 - Aggressive
Balanced Advantage	CRISIL Hybrid 50+50 - Moderate

External references

References

SEBI Circular on Two-Tiered Benchmark Structure for MF Schemes, 27 October 2021.
SEBI Master Circular for Mutual Funds.
AMFI Best Practice Guidelines.

MSCI Emerging Markets Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is the global benchmark tracking equity market performance across 24+ emerging-market economies, with India consistently among the top three weights alongside China and Taiwan. The index is constructed by MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International), the dominant provider of global investment indices, and is the reference standard for emerging-market portfolio management worldwide.

For Indian capital markets, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index is important because:

Foreign portfolio investor flows: FPIs investing globally use MSCI EM as their reference allocation. India’s weight in MSCI EM directly translates to passive-fund inflows into Indian equities.
India-focused funds: International India-focused mutual funds typically benchmark against MSCI India (a sub-index) or MSCI EM India.
Indian fund-of-fund schemes: Indian-resident investors accessing global emerging markets via India-resident mutual funds may use MSCI EM as the benchmark.

Index methodology

Constituent universe

The index covers:

MSCI World Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The MSCI World Index is the principal global developed-markets equity benchmark, tracking approximately 1,500 large and mid-cap stocks across 23 developed countries. The index is the standard reference for global developed-market portfolio management and serves as the benchmark for Indian Fund-of-Funds schemes that offer global developed-market exposure to Indian resident investors.

For Indian retail investors seeking global diversification, MSCI World provides:

Developed-market exposure: 23 countries including US, UK, Germany, Japan, Switzerland.
Currency diversification: Across USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, CHF.
Sectoral diversification: Beyond the home-country bias of Indian-only portfolios.

Index methodology

Country coverage

The index covers 23 developed countries:

Nasdaq 100 Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Nasdaq 100 Index is the leading US large-cap technology and growth equity index, tracking the 100 largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq exchange. The index is heavily weighted toward technology and innovative-growth companies, making it the favoured benchmark for Indian investors seeking concentrated exposure to the US technology sector.

For Indian retail investors, Nasdaq 100 exposure provides:

Tech-heavy growth tilt: Higher growth potential than broader US markets like the S&P 500 .
Higher volatility: Typically 20-25% annual standard deviation versus S&P 500’s 15-18%.
Geographic and sectoral diversification: From Indian-equity-heavy portfolios.

Index methodology

Constituent selection

The Nasdaq 100:

NIFTY 10-year G-Sec Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The NIFTY 10-year G-Sec Index tracks the benchmark 10-year Indian Government Security yield, serving as the principal long-tenor debt index for benchmarking gilt funds and dynamic-bond mutual funds. The index is constructed by NSE Indices (the index-construction arm of the National Stock Exchange) and is referenced widely by debt-fund managers, asset allocators, and macro-economic analysts.

For Indian retail investors, the 10-year G-Sec yield is the single most-watched indicator of Indian interest-rate conditions. The yield reflects:

NIFTY 5-year G-Sec Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The NIFTY 5-year G-Sec Index tracks the benchmark 5-year Indian Government Security yield, serving as the mid-tenor debt index for benchmarking medium-duration gilt funds , banking-and-PSU debt funds, and certain dynamic-bond mutual funds. The index is constructed by NSE Indices and complements the longer-tenor NIFTY 10-year G-Sec .

For mid-duration debt-fund analysis, the 5-year G-Sec yield is the natural reference point. Its behaviour during yield-curve movements (steepening, flattening) provides insight into:

Short-medium policy-rate expectations.
Yield-curve shape vs the 10-year.
Inflation expectations over the medium term.

Index methodology

Constituent

The index references the benchmark 5-year G-Sec (typically the most recently-issued 5-year paper or the most-traded 5-year security).

Nifty BeES (2001): India's first ETF

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Nifty Benchmark Exchange Traded Scheme (Nifty BeES), launched by Benchmark Asset Management in December 2001, was India’s first exchange-traded fund (ETF). The scheme tracked the NIFTY 50 index and laid the foundation for the Indian ETF segment, which has since grown from a single scheme in 2001 to over Rs 5 lakh crore in AUM by the mid-2020s, representing a major segment of the Indian mutual fund industry.

For the Indian mutual fund industry, Nifty BeES marked the introduction of a passive, exchange-listed investment vehicle that combined the diversification of mutual funds with the trading flexibility of stocks. The scheme established the operational and regulatory framework that subsequent Indian ETFs would follow.

S&P 500 Index

Tue, 19 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The S&P 500 Index is the principal large-cap US equity index tracking 500 leading US-listed companies, constructed and maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices. The index is the dominant benchmark for US-equity portfolio management globally and is the natural reference for Indian mutual fund schemes offering US-equity exposure.

For Indian retail investors seeking US-equity diversification, S&P 500-tracking mutual fund schemes provide a structured route. Indian-resident investors can access the S&P 500 through:

BSE 100 TRI (Total Returns Index)