MFs wary of Sebi plan to allow celeb ads, cite mis-selling, edge for big entities

SEBI's proposal to allow celebrity endorsements by mutual fund AMCs is facing resistance from industry executives, who warn of increased mis-selling risk and competitive imbalance favouring larger players. Concerns center on rising advertising costs, with SBI Mutual Fund's ad spend up 42 percent to about 68 crore rupees in FY26, HDFC Mutual Fund up 15 percent to around 54 crore rupees, and UTI Mutual Fund up 37 percent to about 22 crore rupees. The proposal restricts celebrity ads to AMC brand-building only and defines celebrities broadly to include influencers with over 500,000 followers.