Total Return Index (TRI) benchmarking rule

Mon, 18 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

SEBI’s Total Return Index (TRI) benchmarking rule requires mutual fund schemes to compare performance against Total Return Index variants rather than Price Return Index. The rule, effective from February 2018, aligned mutual fund benchmarking with international best practice and produces more honest active-fund-vs-index comparisons.

Background

Price Return Index (PRI)

The Price Return Index (PRI) of an underlying index tracks only price changes:

Doesn’t include dividend reinvestment.
Understates the actual total return achievable by index investing.

Total Return Index (TRI)

The Total Return Index includes:

TRI Benchmarking on WebNotes

Total Return Index (TRI) benchmarking rule

Background

Price Return Index (PRI)

Total Return Index (TRI)