Fund Houses Revise their KYC Process

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund (MF), SBI MF, Union KBC MF, DSP BlackRock MF & Birla Sun Life MF and many other fund houses - Revise their KYC Process.

With a view to bring uniformity in KYC process, SEBI has introduced a common Know your Customer (KYC) application for all the SEBI registered intermediaries viz. Mutual Funds, Portfolio Managers, Depository Participants, Stock Brokers, Venture Capital Funds, Collective Investment Schemes etc. All the new investors are therefore requested to use the Common KYC application form to apply for KYC and mandatorily undergo In Person Verification (IPV) requirements with SEBI registered intermediaries including Mutual Funds.

The fund houses shall perform the initial KYC of its new investors and may undertake enhanced KYC measures commensurate with the risk profile of its investors. The MF shall upload the details of the investors on the system of the KYC Registration Agency (KRA). KRA shall send a letter to the investor within 10 working days of the receipt of the initial / updated KYC documents from the Mutual Fund, confirming the details thereof.

It is mandatory for intermediaries including mutual funds to carry out IPV of its new investors from the effective date. The IPV carried out by any SEBI registered intermediary can be relied upon by the Mutual Fund. Fund houses or NISM / AMFI certified distributors who are KYD compliant are authorized to undertake the IPV for Mutual Fund investors. Further, in case of any applications received directly (i.e. without being routed through the distributors) from the investors, the Mutual Fund may rely upon the IPV (on the KYC Application Form) performed by the scheduled commercial banks.

Once the investor has done KYC with a SEBI registered intermediary, the investors need not undergo the same process again with another intermediary including mutual funds. However, the Mutual Fund reserves the right to carry out fresh KYC of the investor.

AMC reserves the right to reject application forms for transactions in units of the Fund not accompanied by letter / acknowledgement issued by KRA. The KYC compliance status will be validated with the records of the KRA before allotting units.

Existing KYC compliant investors of the Mutual Fund can continue to invest as per the current practice. However, existing investors are also urged to comply with the new KYC requirements including IPV as mandated by SEBI.

The above change in relation to KYC process is effective from 1 January 2012.

Source: http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/News/Fund-Houses-Revise-their-KYC-Process/4094357190