IDFC Mutual Fund has announced a dividend of 24% and 20% under dividend option of IDFC Premier Equity Fund - Plan A & B respectively (open-ended equity scheme). The record date for dividend has been fixed as March 29, 2010.

Union Bank of India and Belgium's KBC will jointly invest 50 million euros in their planned mutual fund joint venture, the Indian bank's chairman and managing director MV Nair said on Friday. The venture, in which Union Bank will hold 51 per cent stake and KBC the rest, is likely to receive regulatory approval in four to five months, he told reporters at a media briefing.

IDBI Bank today said it has received final nod from capital market regulator, SEBI, to launch its mutual fund operations. The asset management company, IDBI Asset Management (IDBI AMC) is aiming to launch its products across the equity and fixed income category.

Reliance Mutual Fund has declared dividend under its open ended schemes - Reliance Diversified Power Sector Fund, Reliance Vision Fund and Reliance Growth Fund. The quantum of dividend decided for distribution is 25 per cent that is 2.5 per unit on the face value of Rs. 10 per unit each. The record date decided for distribution of dividend for all the schemes is 30th March, 2010.

Edelweiss Mutual Fund has filed an offer document with SEBI to launch Edelweiss Super Select Equity Fund, an open ended equity scheme. The primary investment objective of the scheme is to generate long term capital appreciation from a relatively concentrated portfolio of predominantly equity and equity related securities including derivatives. The Scheme may also invest in debt and money market instruments for managing liquidity or when the fund manager has a defensive view on the market.

ICRA Online (ICRON), a subsidiary of rating firm ICRA, and Belgium-based Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), on Wednesday entered into an agreement for setting up a payment gateway for transactions in mutual funds. The ICRON-SWIFT gateway will help reduce the time span for mutual fund transactions to one day as against the existing three days. This would be operational by early 2011. The platform would enable both institutions and retail investors to make payments against purchase of mutual fund units without writing cheques. PK Choudhury, vice-chairman and group CEO, ICRA, said, "The platform will effectively make use of secured mobile messaging system or the email messaging facility for fund transfer advices."

Bharti AXA Mutual Fund has approved Mar.29, 2010 as the record date for declaration of dividend under quarterly dividend option in eco plan and regular plan of Bharti AXA Equity Fund (open ended equity growth). The quantum of dividend under both the plans will be 10% i.e. Rs 1 per unit as on the record date.

Prospective mutual fund and ULIP investors can now use the standard messaging service or SMS to make payments, rather than issuing cheques, while buying units. Icra Online has entered into a strategic tie-up with an international agency for setting up a new payments gateway in India. Credit rating agency Icra's tie-up with SWIFT, or Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Tele-communication, is aimed at bringing down the turnaround time between making payment and receiving units in hand.

Mirae Asset Mutual Fund has filed an offer document with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch Mirae Asset Indo China Consumption Fund, an open ended equity oriented scheme. The investment objective of the scheme is to generate long term capital appreciation through an actively managed portfolio investing in equity and equity related securities of companies that are likely to benefit either directly or indirectly from consumption led demand and should be domiciled or having their area of primary activity in India/China. The securities of these companies could be listed anywhere in the world.

Canara Robeco Mutual Fund has declared dividend under its scheme, Canara Robeco Equity Diversified Fund (open ended diversified scheme). The quantum of dividend decided for distribution is 20 per cent that is Rs 2.00 per unit on the face value of Rs. 10 per unit. The record date decided for distribution of dividend is 26th March, 2010.

Last week, Sebi published a circular with a range of changes in the rules governing the operation of mutual funds. Even though there were as many as six different changes that were made, there isn't anything much that would directly impact mutual fund investors. From an investor's perspective, the most interesting were the changes regarding New Fund Offers.

Unlike stock IPOs, mutual fund offers stay open for a long period, sometimes 30 or even 45 days. Sebi has now asked that this be shortened to 15 days. The reasoning behind this is that over a long period during which the issue is open, investors who apply early in the period find their money locked in unproductively. In the same spirit, Sebi has extended the ASBA (Applications Supported by Blocked Amount) system to mutual fund NFOs. In ASBA, investors apply for IPOs while the application amount stays in their own account and is just blocked from other use. The issuer is able to withdraw the amount when it allots the shares.

This scheme is a Close Ended Income scheme. The new fund offer starts from 23rd March 2010 to 25th March 2010.

SBI Mutual Fund has decided to introduce the new payment facility through State Bank of India (SBI) ATM Cum Debit Card for online transaction of its website for its investors. The facility is available under the all schemes except SBI Magnum Insta Cash Fund, SBI Magnum Insta Cash Fund - Liquid Floater, SBI Premier Liquid Fund and SBI Short Horizon Debt Fund - Ultra Short Term Fund. The facility will be effective from 22nd March, 2010. State Bank of India will be set maximum amount of investment through this facility from time to time.

The Indian mutual fund industry reported a growth of 2.7% sequentially, after witnessing two successive sequential declines of 4.1% and 1.6% in January and December, respectively. It was mainly on account of positive inflow by the financial institutions and stabilization in the equity market. In February, the industry's average asset under management (AAUM) stood at Rs7.8 trillion, an increase of Rs20,200 crore.