Very soon, you may see Amitabh Bachchan, Sachin Tendulkar, M S Dhoni or Virat Kohli promoting investments in mutual funds.
In a dramatic shift in its strategy to boost mutual fund investments in the country, markets regulator Sebi is seriously considering the option of allowing celebrity endorsement for the fund industry as a whole under trade body AMFI, a top Sebi official said. However, the regulator will not allow brand ambassadors for individual fund houses.
After a recent meeting between Sebi officials and top executives from mutual fund houses, the proposal to allow the industry to use celebrities was forwarded to the Sebi chairman.
Following that, top officials within the regulatory body are looking into the idea, which could give a big boost to the expansion of mutual funds, three industry players told TOI.
Currently, with the main objective of protecting investors from mis-selling, the market regulator does not allow celebrity endorsement of individual mutual fund products. On the other hand, IRDAI, the regulator for the insurance industry, does not have any such rule and allows insurance companies to use brand ambassadors.
