NISM Series V-B Syllabus: Mutual Fund Foundation
All 10 chapters of the Mutual Fund Foundation workbook, and what each one covers.
NISM Series V-B is the Mutual Fund Foundation exam. Its curriculum has 10 chapters, numbered I to X. Chapters I to III explain what a mutual fund is, chapter IV the five product types this cadre of distributors may sell, and chapters V to X the documents, distribution rules, returns, tax, investor services and regulation around them.
The exam exists for a specific group: the new cadre of mutual fund distributors created by SEBI's circular of September 13, 2012. That group sells simple and performing schemes only, so the syllabus is narrower than Series V-A. NISM publishes no weightage for any V-B chapter.
All 10 chapters at a glance
Chapter titles as NISM's curriculum names them.
| Chapter | What it covers |
|---|---|
| I. Investment Landscape | Saving versus investing, asset classes, financial needs and goals, and how mutual funds meet them |
| II. Concept and Role of a Mutual Fund | What a mutual fund is, how schemes are classified, and the growth of the industry in India |
| III. Legal Structure of Mutual Funds in India | The sponsor, trustee and AMC structure, service providers such as RTAs and custodians, and the role of AMFI |
| IV. Mutual Fund Products for the New Cadre of Distributors | The five product types this cadre may sell |
| V. Scheme Related Information | Mandatory documents (SID, SAI, KIM) and non-mandatory disclosures |
| VI. Fund Distribution and Channel Management Practices | Kinds of distributors, becoming one, commission and its disclosure, AMC due diligence, distributor versus investment adviser |
| VII. Performance of Mutual Funds | Scheme returns, loads, risk, risk-adjusted return and benchmarks |
| VIII. Taxation | Capital gains, IDCW income, stamp duty, set-off, STT, Section 80C, TDS and GST |
| IX. Investor Services | The investor journey from NFO to redemption: application, KYC, allotment, statements, cut-off times, systematic transactions, turnaround times |
| X. Legal and Regulatory Environment | SEBI's role, grievance redressal and the AMFI codes |
Chapters I to III: what a mutual fund is
Chapter I starts before mutual funds. It separates saving from investing, names the asset classes and maps the four broad financial needs to types of financial goal. The point is to let you place a scheme against a goal: a liquid fund for an emergency need, an equity fund for a goal years away.
Chapter II defines a mutual fund and classifies schemes by structure, asset class and objective. Chapter III is the organisation chart: the sponsor sets up the trust, the trustees supervise, the AMC manages the money, and service providers support it.
Chapter IV: the five products you may sell
This chapter is what makes V-B a different exam from V-A. NISM's curriculum lists the simple and performing schemes this cadre may sell as five product types: liquid and money market schemes, index funds, diversified equity schemes, retirement benefit schemes and fixed maturity plans (FMPs).
Learn what each one holds and who it suits. A liquid scheme holds very short-term debt and suits money parked for weeks. An index fund copies an index and does not try to beat it. A diversified equity scheme spreads across sectors and company sizes. A retirement benefit scheme is built for a long horizon. An FMP is a close-ended debt scheme with a fixed maturity.
Free account, this exam preselected.
Chapters V to VII: documents, distribution and returns
Chapter V names the documents every scheme must publish: the Scheme Information Document (SID), the Statement of Additional Information (SAI) and the Key Information Memorandum (KIM), plus the disclosures a fund may add on its own. Chapter VI is the distributor's own rulebook: becoming a distributor, earning and disclosing commission under SEBI's rule, the AMC's due diligence, and how a distributor differs from an investment adviser.
Chapter VII carries the arithmetic. You calculate the return on a scheme from two NAVs, apply an exit load to find the price an investor receives, and read a risk-adjusted return against a benchmark. Expect to work these on paper rather than recognise them.
Chapters VIII to X: tax, investor services and regulation
Chapter VIII covers how a mutual fund investor is taxed, from capital gains on redemption and dividend income under the IDCW option to set-off of losses, STT, Section 80C, TDS and GST. Tax rates change with each Finance Act, so learn the structure from the current workbook and check any rate in older notes.
Chapter IX is the longest and most operational chapter. It follows an investor from NFO to redemption, with cut-off time and time stamping the sub-topic to learn most carefully. Chapter X closes with SEBI's role, the grievance redressal path and the AMFI codes every distributor signs up to.
How V-B tests the syllabus
The paper is 50 single MCQs of 1 mark each, with no negative marking. Chapters I to VI and X produce definition and rule questions: which document, which constituent, which code. Chapters VII and VIII produce short calculations: a return from two NAVs, a redemption price after exit load, which tax applies to which option. Chapter IX produces procedure questions on cut-off times and KYC. The common trap is answering chapter IV from a general mutual fund course: the question asks which schemes this cadre may sell, and a sectoral fund is the wrong answer however well it performs.
FAQs
What is the difference between NISM Series V-A and V-B?expand_more
V-A is the full Mutual Fund Distributors exam for anyone who sells mutual funds. V-B is the Mutual Fund Foundation exam for the new cadre of distributors named in SEBI's 2012 circular, such as postal agents and retired teachers, government officials and bank officers with at least 10 years of service, who may sell only simple and performing schemes. So chapter IV covers five product types, and the paper is 50 questions.
How many chapters are there in the NISM V-B syllabus?expand_more
10, from Investment Landscape to Legal and Regulatory Environment, as listed on NISM's curriculum page.
What is the chapter-wise weightage for NISM V-B?expand_more
NISM does not publish one. Any chapter percentage you see for V-B is not from NISM. Plan around the chapters new to you, usually IV, VII, VIII and IX.
Is NISM V-B easier than V-A?expand_more
The syllabus is narrower and the paper is shorter, with no negative marking, but the chapters it shares with V-A go to the same depth. NISM publishes no pass rate for either exam, so there is no official measure of difficulty.
Does the NISM V-B syllabus include numericals?expand_more
Yes, a few. Chapter VII asks for scheme returns and the price after exit load, and chapter VIII asks which tax applies and how gains and losses set off. The rest of the paper is definitions, rules and procedures.
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