Aditya Birla SL CRISIL-IBX Financial Services 9-12 Months Debt Index Fund Direct Growth Review 2026: NAV, Returns, Portfolio & Should You Invest?

Aditya Birla SL CRISIL-IBX Financial Services 9-12 Months Debt Index Fund Direct Growth Plan is at a NAV of ₹11.0369 as of 28 Aug 2026 and manages ₹1,109 Cr. Its 1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns are 6.3009%, 0% and 0%, and the fund sits in the Balanced Risk category. Our view is that it suits investors who want a short-duration debt allocation with relatively steady income-style behaviour, while accepting that the return pattern is still very early in its life.

The fund has been live since 21 Mar 2025, so the record is short and the return history is limited. The mix of certificate of deposit, commercial paper and corporate debt points to a portfolio designed around short to medium maturity exposure rather than equity-like growth, and that matters more than the headline benchmark label here.

Quick facts

The fund is managed by Sanjay Pawar and Mohit Sharma.

Source data date: as of 28 Aug 2026

Performance

Recent performance has been uneven but not weak. Over 1 month, the fund stayed positive while the benchmark was negative, which suggests some short-term resilience. Over 3 months, both moved up, but the benchmark moved a little more strongly than the fund.

The 1-year picture is more useful for judging the fund today, and here the fund clearly held up better than the benchmark. That said, the scheme is still young, so we would treat the 1-year number as an early signal rather than a full cycle result. There is not yet a 3-year or 5-year history to test how this portfolio behaves across different rate environments.

The daily pattern over the past year also points to a relatively controlled movement rather than sharp swings. The fund appears to have spent long stretches moving in a narrow band, with a gradual lift over time and only limited pullback. For a debt index fund, that is the kind of behaviour many investors look for, but the short history means the next phase matters as much as the first year.

Against the benchmark, the fund is ahead over 1 year, behind over 3 months, and modestly ahead over 1 month. That mixed picture tells us the fund has not simply tracked the benchmark at every point, even though the larger trend remains stable.

Source data date: as of 28 Aug 2026

Peer comparison

This assessment is prepared by Uniapps Investment Adviser Pvt. Ltd. under SEBI Registered Investment Adviser registration INA000017639. The fund’s 1-year return is much lower than the equity-oriented peer funds listed here, which is expected because its objective is different and its portfolio is built around debt instruments. The more relevant comparison is that its short-term return profile has been positive, while 3-year and 5-year figures are still unavailable because the scheme has not existed long enough. That makes the current peer reading more about consistency and structure than about long-run compounding.

Among the available peer figures, the fund’s 1-year return is far below the equity-themed peers, but those funds operate in a different return environment. For this scheme, the key point is that the short history does not yet let us compare longer-term behaviour in a meaningful way. The short-term story and the longer-term story are therefore not yet fully aligned because only the short-term story is visible.

Source data date: as of 28 Aug 2026

Portfolio: where your money goes

The portfolio is entirely in the “Other” bucket, which is consistent with a debt index structure rather than an equity-style market-cap split. Within the holdings, certificate of deposit is the largest block at 45.52%, followed by commercial paper at 27.25% and corporate debt at 25.45%. That spread is fairly balanced across the main debt sleeves, even though the first category is clearly the largest.

The largest sector is materially bigger than the next one, but the gap is not extreme enough to suggest a single concentrated bet. Because commercial paper and corporate debt are also substantial, the fund’s behaviour may be influenced by more than one short-duration debt segment. The small cash and cash-equivalent balance at 1.78% should act more as a buffer than a return driver.

In our view, certificate of deposit is likely to have the greatest influence on day-to-day portfolio behaviour, simply because it carries the highest weight. Even so, the overall structure still looks spread across debt instruments rather than overly dependent on one issuer type. That can support steadier movement, although the limited track record means the pattern has not yet been tested across a full interest-rate cycle.

Source data date: as of 28 Aug 2026

Who should invest

This fund fits investors who are comfortable with Balanced Risk and want a debt-oriented holding with short-duration characteristics. The 1-year return is positive, while the 3-year and 5-year figures are not available yet, so the main fit is for investors who can read the scheme’s early record without treating it as a long-cycle proof point.

The benchmark comparison suggests the fund has been able to hold up better over 1 year, but the shorter 3-month stretch was less favourable. That means the main trade-off is between relative stability in a debt-style portfolio and the uncertainty that comes from a young scheme with limited history. A medium-term horizon is more sensible than a very short one, because that gives the portfolio time to play out beyond a single phase of market movement.

Tax and exit load

Exit load: No exit load.

Source data date: as of 28 Aug 2026

Frequently asked questions

What is the current NAV of this fund?

The current NAV is ₹11.0369 as of 28 Aug 2026.

What are the fund’s 1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns?

The fund’s 1-year return is 6.3009%. The 3-year and 5-year returns are Data not available.

How has it done against the benchmark?

Over 1 year, the fund has outperformed the benchmark, which is -2.29%. Over 3 months, the benchmark has been ahead, while over 1 month the fund has been slightly better.

How does it compare with the listed peer funds?

The fund’s 1-year return is far lower than the listed equity-oriented peer funds, but those peers are in different return environments and should be read in that context. For this scheme, the more relevant point is that its own short-term return has stayed positive.

What is the minimum SIP amount?

The minimum SIP amount is ₹1,000.

Who manages the fund and what is the exit load?

The fund is managed by Sanjay Pawar and Mohit Sharma. There is no exit load.

Bottom line

This is a young debt index fund with a short but positive return record, and its longer-term figures are still not available. The fund has held up better than the benchmark over 1 year, while the 3-month picture was more mixed. Its portfolio is concentrated in certificate of deposit, commercial paper and corporate debt, so the behaviour should be read as debt-style rather than equity-style. It may suit investors looking for a Balanced Risk allocation with a modest SIP entry and no exit load, provided they are comfortable with limited history.

Published on 31 August 2026 at 4:04 PM IST