The mutual fund industry has witnessed remarkable growth in the last decade, helped by increased investor interest. While the industry’s assets under management (AUM) jumped over sixfold from Rs.10.83 trillion in March 2015 to Rs.65.74 trillion in March 2025, the number of folios swelled from 4.17 crore to 23.45 crore during the same period.
Innovative schemes offered by fund houses have attracted a lot of investors, though issues like overlooked or neglected investments have also emerged over the years. Trivesh D., Chief Operating Officer at Tradejini, says that there are over Rs.2,600 crore in unclaimed mutual fund assets as of 2022-23, and a lot of that are in folios that haven’t seen any activity for over a decade.
Why assets are neglected?
Most of the neglected investments were made in physical form with limited KYC (know your customer) details. Moreover, irregularities like non-updation of address and obsolete email IDs lead to nonappearance of folios in the consolidated account statement. The death of the original unitholder is another reason for the forgotten investments.
According to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), money lying in active folios may remain perpetually dormant unless the investor (nominee/legal heir) approaches the concerned asset management company for redemption or transfer. The regulator warns that such inactive folios may become susceptible to fraudulent redemptions.
How to track neglected folios?
To track such overlooked investments, Sebi provides an online platform called MITRA ( Mutual Fund Investment Tracing and Retrieval Assistant). It is an industry-level searchable database of inactive and unclaimed mutual fund folios. Apart from tracking lost folios, the platform prompts investors to complete the KYC norms as per the current norms. MITRA also helps legal heirs claim any forgotten investments made by a deceased relative.
How to use MITRA tool?
Sebi defines an inactive folio as a folio where a unit balance is available, but no investor has initiated transactions (financial and non-financial) in the last ten years.
Vivek Sharma, VP and Investments Head at Estee Advisors says that MITRA helps reduce fragmentation in records and aids in strengthening the financial ecosystem. “This is a timely step to build transparency, protect investor interests, and unlock long-forgotten wealth—especially for legal heirs and nominees,” adds Sharma.
How to access the portal?
To access the online portal, the investor needs to log on to https://www.mfcentral. com/. The sign-up on MF Central requires PAN or PEKRN (PAN Exempt KYC Reference Number) for investors in mutual funds who don’t have a PAN number, and a mobile number or email ID. The user will receive an OTP for authentication. Once authenticated, the user needs to click on the MITRA section on the MF Central website.
One can run a query by providing a minimum of three inputs, including the name of the investor, any one input from the key identification detail section and any one input from the additional details section. The name of the investor is a mandatory input. The key identification details include PAN, PEKRN, email ID, mobile number, date of birth, or bank account number. Additional details may include address, pincode, city, or nominee name. If the user lacks key identification details, they can provide any three inputs from the additional details section by selecting ‘None’ under key identification details. The user can also enter optional details like the folio number and AMC name to accelerate the search process. After clicking on ‘Proceed,’ the system will scan across all mutual fund databases to find any dormant folios linked to the inputs provided by the user.
Record of unclaimed folios
If a match is found, the system will display the fund names and guide the investor on the next steps. The investor must then contact the respective mutual fund office or one of the Registrar and Transfer Agents—CAMS or KFin Technologies. The following self-attested documents (along with originals for verification) are required at the mutual fund or Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA) office: PAN, address proof, investor’s photograph, a cancelled cheque or copy of bank passbook/bank statement, and a signed letter from the investor listing the query details and the AMC name shown in the output. Full document details are available in the FAQ section of the MITRA portal. The output (fund or AMC name) generated by MITRA is based on a probable search. Final verification and due diligence will be conducted by the RTA or AMC once the investor submits the required documents.
How legal heirs can benefit?
In the query section, the investor will have to enter the PAN number and details of the deceased investor. The portal will then display inactive or unclaimed mutual fund investments linked to that investor. To claim these investments, heirs need to submit essential documents, including the investor’s death certificate, the claimant’s KYC documents, and proof of bank account. Transmission is quicker when nomination details are available. Claims with multiple legal heirs may take longer due to additional documents like no-objection certificates.
Apart from MITRA, Sebi has taken further steps to reduce unclaimed assets. It has partnered with DigiLocker, the government’s digital document wallet, to help investors store and access details of their demat and mutual fund holdings, including consolidated account statements.
Investors can appoint data access nominees through DigiLocker. In the event of the investor’s demise, nominees will receive automatic notifications, helping initiate the transmission process.
Innovative schemes offered by fund houses have attracted a lot of investors, though issues like overlooked or neglected investments have also emerged over the years. Trivesh D., Chief Operating Officer at Tradejini, says that there are over Rs.2,600 crore in unclaimed mutual fund assets as of 2022-23, and a lot of that are in folios that haven’t seen any activity for over a decade.
Why assets are neglected?
Most of the neglected investments were made in physical form with limited KYC (know your customer) details. Moreover, irregularities like non-updation of address and obsolete email IDs lead to nonappearance of folios in the consolidated account statement. The death of the original unitholder is another reason for the forgotten investments.
According to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), money lying in active folios may remain perpetually dormant unless the investor (nominee/legal heir) approaches the concerned asset management company for redemption or transfer. The regulator warns that such inactive folios may become susceptible to fraudulent redemptions.
How to track neglected folios?
To track such overlooked investments, Sebi provides an online platform called MITRA ( Mutual Fund Investment Tracing and Retrieval Assistant). It is an industry-level searchable database of inactive and unclaimed mutual fund folios. Apart from tracking lost folios, the platform prompts investors to complete the KYC norms as per the current norms. MITRA also helps legal heirs claim any forgotten investments made by a deceased relative.
How to use MITRA tool?
Sebi defines an inactive folio as a folio where a unit balance is available, but no investor has initiated transactions (financial and non-financial) in the last ten years.
Vivek Sharma, VP and Investments Head at Estee Advisors says that MITRA helps reduce fragmentation in records and aids in strengthening the financial ecosystem. “This is a timely step to build transparency, protect investor interests, and unlock long-forgotten wealth—especially for legal heirs and nominees,” adds Sharma.
How to access the portal?
To access the online portal, the investor needs to log on to https://www.mfcentral. com/. The sign-up on MF Central requires PAN or PEKRN (PAN Exempt KYC Reference Number) for investors in mutual funds who don’t have a PAN number, and a mobile number or email ID. The user will receive an OTP for authentication. Once authenticated, the user needs to click on the MITRA section on the MF Central website.
One can run a query by providing a minimum of three inputs, including the name of the investor, any one input from the key identification detail section and any one input from the additional details section. The name of the investor is a mandatory input. The key identification details include PAN, PEKRN, email ID, mobile number, date of birth, or bank account number. Additional details may include address, pincode, city, or nominee name. If the user lacks key identification details, they can provide any three inputs from the additional details section by selecting ‘None’ under key identification details. The user can also enter optional details like the folio number and AMC name to accelerate the search process. After clicking on ‘Proceed,’ the system will scan across all mutual fund databases to find any dormant folios linked to the inputs provided by the user.
Record of unclaimed folios
If a match is found, the system will display the fund names and guide the investor on the next steps. The investor must then contact the respective mutual fund office or one of the Registrar and Transfer Agents—CAMS or KFin Technologies. The following self-attested documents (along with originals for verification) are required at the mutual fund or Registrar and Transfer Agent (RTA) office: PAN, address proof, investor’s photograph, a cancelled cheque or copy of bank passbook/bank statement, and a signed letter from the investor listing the query details and the AMC name shown in the output. Full document details are available in the FAQ section of the MITRA portal. The output (fund or AMC name) generated by MITRA is based on a probable search. Final verification and due diligence will be conducted by the RTA or AMC once the investor submits the required documents.
How legal heirs can benefit?
In the query section, the investor will have to enter the PAN number and details of the deceased investor. The portal will then display inactive or unclaimed mutual fund investments linked to that investor. To claim these investments, heirs need to submit essential documents, including the investor’s death certificate, the claimant’s KYC documents, and proof of bank account. Transmission is quicker when nomination details are available. Claims with multiple legal heirs may take longer due to additional documents like no-objection certificates.
Apart from MITRA, Sebi has taken further steps to reduce unclaimed assets. It has partnered with DigiLocker, the government’s digital document wallet, to help investors store and access details of their demat and mutual fund holdings, including consolidated account statements.
Investors can appoint data access nominees through DigiLocker. In the event of the investor’s demise, nominees will receive automatic notifications, helping initiate the transmission process.
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