The training provided by BOS is free of charge, and there are no fees required for taking the exam.

Upon successfully completing the Mutual Fund Distributors examination, the candidate will: 1. Possess knowledge of the basics of mutual funds, including their role and structure, various types of mutual fund schemes, and their distinctive features. 2. Demonstrate understanding in the area of mutual fund distribution, including how schemes are evaluated and how appropriate products and services can be recommended to investors and potential investors in the market. 3. Know the technical aspects like legal, accounting, valuation, and taxation related to mutual funds and their distribution. 4. Acquire familiarity with financial planning as an investment approach in mutual funds, enabling mutual fund distributors to cultivate enduring relationships with their clients.

To be eligible for the Mutual Fund Distributors examination, candidates must meet the following criteria: The candidate should be a minimum of 22 years old. For Insurance Agents: Graduation is not mandatory but their Insurance card is mandatory. For Non-Insurance Agents: The candidate must be a graduate of any stream.

The candidate will be given an application form to be filled out with all the relevant information with proper documents. Once the necessary documents are received from the candidate, the training sessions will be conducted online through webinar-based training. This training will be provided free of cost and will span over 10-15 days. Following the completion of training and mock tests, we will proceed to book the NISM VA exam for the candidates. The fees for the NISM VA exam and ARN generation will be covered by us, meaning candidates will not be charged any fees for these processes. In case a candidate does not pass the NISM VA exam, they have the option to retake the exam by paying the actual NISM VA Exam fees, which amount to Rs. 1,500/-.

The Mutual Fund Distributors examination consists of 100 questions of 1 mark each and should be completed in 2 hours. The passing score for the examination is 50%. There shall be no negative marking.

CHAPTER 1: INVESTMENT LANDSCAPE 1.1 Investors and their Financial Goals 1.2 Savings or Investments? 1.3 Different Asset Classes 1.4 Investment Risks 1.5 Risk Measures and Management Strategies 1.6 Behavioural Biases in Investment Decision Making 1.7 Risk Profiling 1.8 Understanding Asset Allocation 1.9 Do-it-yourself versus Taking Professional Help CHAPTER 2: CONCEPT AND ROLE OF A MUTUAL FUND 2.1 Concept of a Mutual fund 2.2 Classification of Mutual Funds 2.3 Growth of the mutual fund industry in India CHAPTER 3: LEGAL STRUCTURE OF MUTUAL FUNDS IN INDIA 3.1 Structure of Mutual Funds in India 3.2 Key Constituents of a Mutual Fund 3.3 Organization Structure of Asset Management Company 3.4 Role and Support Function of Service Providers 3.5 Role and Function of AMFI CHAPTER 4: LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK 4.1 Role of Regulators in India 4.2 Role of the Securities and Exchange Board of India 4.3 Due Diligence Process by AMCs for Distributors of Mutual Funds 4.4 Investor Grievance Redress Mechanism 4.5 AMFI Code of Conduct for Intermediaries CHAPTER 5: SCHEME RELATED INFORMATION 5.2 Non-Mandatory Disclosures CHAPTER 6: FUND DISTRIBUTION AND CHANNEL MANAGEMENT PRACTICES 6.1 The Role and importance of mutual fund distributor 6.2 Different Kinds of mutual fund distributors 6.3 Modes of Distribution 6.4 Pre-requisites to becoming Distributor of a Mutual Fund 6.5 Revenue for a mutual fund distributor 6.6 Commission Disclosure mandated by SEBI 6.7 Due Diligence Process by AMCs for Distributors of Mutual Funds 6.8 Difference between distributors and Investment Advisors 6.9 Nomination Facilities to Agents/Distributors and Payment of Commission to Nominee 6.10 Change of distributor CHAPTER 7: NET ASSET VALUE, TOTAL EXPENSE RATIO AND PRICING OF UNITS 7.1 Fair Valuation Principles 7.2 Computation of Net Assets of Mutual Fund Scheme and NAV 7.3 Dividends & Distributable Reserves 7.4 Concept of Entry and Exit Load and its Impact on NAV 7.5 Key Accounting and Reporting Requirements 7.6 NAV, Total expense ratio and pricing of units for the Segregated Portfolio CHAPTER:8 TAXATION 8.1 Applicability of taxes in respect of mutual funds 8.2 Capital Gains 8.3 Dividend income 8.4: Stamp Duty on Mutual Fund Units 8.6 Securities Transaction Tax 8.7 Tax benefit under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act 8.8 Tax Deducted at Source 8.9 Applicability of GST CHAPTER 9: INVESTOR SERVICES 9.1 The NFO process 9.2 New Fund Offer Price/On-going Offer Price for Subscription 9.3 Investment Plans and Services 9.4 Allotment of Units to the Investor 9.5 Account statements for investments 9.6 Mutual Fund Investors 9.7 Filling the Application Form for Mutual Funds 9.8 Financial Transactions with Mutual Funds 9.9 Cut-off Time and Time Stamping 9.10 KYC Requirements for Mutual Fund Investors 9.11 Systematic Transactions 9.12 Operational Aspects of Systematic Transactions 9.13 Non-Financial Transactions in Mutual Funds 9.14 Change in Status of Special Investor Categories 9.15 Investor transactions – turnaround times CHAPTER 10: RISK, RETURN AND PERFORMANCE OF FUNDS 10.1 General and Specific Risk Factors 10.2 Factors that affect mutual fund performance 10.3 Drivers of Returns and Risk in a Scheme 10.4 Measures of Returns 10.5 SEBI Norms Regarding Representation of Returns by Mutual Funds in India 10.6 Risks in fund investing with a focus on investors 10.7 Measures of Risk 10.8 Certain Provisions with Respect to Credit Risk CHAPTER 11: MUTUAL FUND SCHEME PERFORMANCE 11.1 Benchmarks and Performance 11.2 Price Return Index or Total Return Index 11.3 Basis of Choosing an appropriate performance benchmark 11.4 Benchmarks for equity schemes 11.5 Benchmarks for Debt Schemes 11.6 Benchmarks for Other Schemes 11.7 Quantitative Measures of Fund Manager Performance 11.8 Tracking Error 11.9 Scheme Performance Disclosure CHAPTER 12: MUTUAL FUND SCHEME SELECTION 12.1 Scheme Selection Based on Investor Needs, preferences and risk-profile 12.2 Risk Levels in mutual fund schemes 12.3 Scheme Selection Based on the investment strategy of mutual funds 12.4 Selection of Mutual Fund scheme offered by different AMCs or within the scheme category 12.5 Selecting Options in mutual fund schemes 12.6 Do’s and Don’ts while selecting mutual fund schemes