Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Review 2026: NAV, Returns, Portfolio & Should You Invest?

Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Plan currently has a NAV of ₹15.878 as of 17 Sep 2026, with an AUM of ₹2,957 Cr. Its 1-year, 3-year and 5-year returns are 15.51%, 0% and 0% respectively, and the scheme is marked High Risk. In our view, the fund has shown a reasonable 1-year outcome, but the short track record and high-risk profile mean it fits best with investors who can accept sharp swings and who are looking at innovation themes with a longer holding period.

The portfolio is built around a compact set of large positions, with the top holdings led by Eternal Limited and One 97 Communications Limited. That gives the fund a clearer theme-led profile than a broad market portfolio, so performance can differ meaningfully from the benchmark in both directions.

Quick facts

Particular	Details
NAV	₹15.878 as of 17 Sep 2026
AUM	₹2,957 Cr
Expense Ratio	0.6%
Launch Date	30 Apr 2024
Min SIP	₹100
Risk Category	High Risk
Benchmark	Nifty 50
Fund Category	Equity
Exit Load	0.50% on or before 30D, Nil after 30D
Fund Managers	Manish Gunwani, Prateek Poddar, Brijesh Shah

The fund is managed by Manish Gunwani, Prateek Poddar and Brijesh Shah.

Source data date: as of 17 Sep 2026

Performance

Period	Fund return	Benchmark return
1M	-1.35%	-3.66%
3M	8.63%	-3.71%
1Y	15.51%	-7.13%
3Y	Data not available	Data not available
5Y	Data not available	Data not available

The recent pattern is stronger than the benchmark across the visible time frames, especially over 3 months and 1 year. The fund’s 1-month return is slightly negative, but it still holds up better than the benchmark over the same period, which suggests the recent pullback has been milder than the market move.

Over 3 months, the fund has turned in a positive result while the benchmark remains negative. That tells us the fund has recovered better in the near term than the broader market measure used here. The one-year figure is the most useful anchor at this stage, and it shows the fund ahead of the benchmark by a wide margin.

The one-year series also points to a fund that has moved through several drawdown and recovery phases rather than following a smooth line higher. That kind of path is consistent with an innovation-led equity strategy, where outcomes can be uneven even when the medium-term direction improves. Because the fund has only a short operating history, we would read the latest performance as encouraging but not yet enough to establish a long cycle.

For investors, the key point is that the fund has so far behaved better than the benchmark in the near term, but the absence of 3-year and 5-year figures means there is no long-cycle performance record to rely on yet. That makes the current stretch useful for context, not proof of how the fund will behave through a full market cycle.

Source data date: as of 17 Sep 2026

Should you BUY or HOLD Bandhan Innovation?

A fund's past returns alone don't tell you whether you should buy it today or continue holding it.

The right decision depends on factors such as your current allocation, purchase price, risk profile, investment horizon and the role this fund plays in your overall portfolio.

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Peer comparison

Fund	1Y return	3Y return	5Y return
Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Plan	15.51%	Data not available	Data not available
ICICI Pru Strategic Metal and Energy Equity FoF Direct Growth Plan	69.8%	36.32%	Data not available
HDFC Pharma and Healthcare Fund Direct Growth Plan	25.31%	Data not available	Data not available
Kotak Healthcare Fund Direct Growth Plan	25.27%	Data not available	Data not available
Motilal Oswal Active Momentum Fund Direct Growth Plan	24.51%	Data not available	Data not available
PGIM India Healthcare Fund Direct Growth Plan	22.75%	Data not available	Data not available

This assessment is prepared by Uniapps Investment Adviser Pvt. Ltd. under SEBI Registered Investment Adviser registration INA000017639. On the latest one-year numbers, the fund trails the strongest peer outcomes in this list, even though it has still done better than the benchmark used for the scheme. The comparison becomes more mixed when we look beyond the short term, because the only peer here with a 3-year figure is far ahead on that measure, while most other peers do not yet offer longer-history figures for a clean comparison. That means the peer picture favours stronger recent returns elsewhere, but it does not give a full long-cycle verdict for this fund.

Source data date: as of 17 Sep 2026

Portfolio: where your money goes

Holding	Sector	Weight
Eternal Limited	Retailing	6.43%
One 97 Communications Limited	IT	5.02%
Bajaj Finserv Limited	Finance	3.72%
ICICI Bank Limited	Bank	3.16%
Meesho Ltd	Retailing	2.8%
Astrazeneca Pharma India Limited	Healthcare	2.72%
Coforge Limited	IT	2.41%
Mahindra & Mahindra Limited	Automobile & Ancillaries	2.33%
Honasa Consumer Limited	Trading	2.28%
Reliance Industries Limited	Crude Oil	2.23%

The top 10 holdings account for approximately 33.1% of the portfolio.

To see all holdings, visit the Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Plan page

The largest holding, Eternal Limited, is 6.43% of the portfolio, so it is large enough to matter without dominating the fund on its own. The next few holdings are not far behind, but the weights step down fairly quickly after the top three, which suggests that individual stock outcomes may still have a visible effect on returns.

By the tenth holding, the weight is 2.23%, so the portfolio has a clear gap between the largest position and the smaller names near the end of the top 10. The displayed holdings also cover only a part of the disclosed book, with 73 holdings in total and the top 10 accounting for 33.1%. In our view, that points to a portfolio that is spread across many positions, but with a meaningful tilt toward a handful of larger ideas.

Source data date: as of 17 Sep 2026

Who should invest

This fund suits investors who are comfortable with High Risk equity exposure and can stay invested long enough to absorb uneven periods. The 1-year result is positive and ahead of the benchmark, but the 3-year and 5-year fields are not yet available, so there is no long-cycle record to smooth out the short history.

Our view is that the fund fits best as part of a longer-term allocation where an investor accepts the possibility of sharp swings in exchange for innovation-style exposure. The main trade-off is that the portfolio may move differently from the broader market and from more traditional equity funds, especially because a few large holdings can matter meaningfully.

Tax and exit load

Holding period	Tax rate	Description
Units held less than 1 year	20%	Short-term capital gains tax
Units held more than 1 year	12.5%	Long-term capital gains tax

Exit load: 0.50% on or before 30D, Nil after 30D.

Source data date: as of 17 Sep 2026

Frequently asked questions

What is the current NAV of Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Plan?

The current NAV is ₹15.878 as of 17 Sep 2026.

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

The 1-year return is 15.51%, while the 3-year and 5-year returns are Data not available for this fund history.

How has the fund done against its benchmark?

It has done better than the benchmark in the visible 1-month, 3-month and 1-year periods. The benchmark has been negative across those same time frames, while the fund stayed ahead.

How does the fund compare with peer funds on recent returns?

Its 1-year return of 15.51% is below the stronger peer outcomes shown here, while one peer also has a clearly higher 3-year figure. That makes the recent peer comparison mixed, with the fund trailing the highest recent peer results but still beating the benchmark.

Is there a minimum SIP amount?

Yes. The minimum SIP amount is ₹100.

Who manages the fund and what is its exit load?

The fund is managed by Manish Gunwani, Prateek Poddar and Brijesh Shah. The exit load is 0.50% on or before 30D, and nil after 30D.

Bottom line

Bandhan Innovation Fund Direct Growth Plan has started with a positive 1-year result and has stayed ahead of the benchmark over the visible shorter periods, but it does not yet have a 3-year or 5-year track record to anchor a longer-cycle judgment. Compared with the peers listed here, its recent return is lower than several stronger one-year outcomes, while the portfolio remains concentrated enough in a few larger holdings to matter. The fund looks most suitable for investors who can tolerate High Risk equity exposure and prefer innovation-led themes over steadier market-style returns.

Published on 18 September 2026 at 1:14 PM IST

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RIA disclosure

Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks. Read all scheme-related documents carefully before investing. This review is prepared by Uniapps Investment Adviser Pvt. Ltd. (earlier known as Uniapps Global Research Pvt. Ltd.) under SEBI Registered Investment Adviser registration INA000017639 for general informational purposes and is not personalized investment advice.